A Play To Remember
by CharismaticBunn
Summary: Adrinette. A new male student has his eyes on Marinette. A play is being held in LadyBug & Chat Noir's honor. Marinette must play LadyBug with said new boy as Chat Noir. Adrien develops mixed feelings & Anti-Bug is back with a partner; Chat Le Blanc.
1. Lucas La Fontaine

**Note:** Hi guys! Just another story I'm working on. Recently got in this show, and well it makes me feel better about what's going on with Amourshipping in Pokemon. HAHA. Yes I know I'm working on a bunch of stories. I'm sure there's a lot of us who do that. :) I hope you guys all enjoy!

* * *

 **A Play To Remember**

 **Genres: Romance, Drama, Friendship,  & a tiny bit of Action**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Miraculous.**

 **Note: Obviously will be ****MarinettexAdrien**

* * *

 **Summary:** A new male student has his eyes on Marinette. A play is being held in LadyBug  & Chat Noir's honor. Marinette must play LadyBug with said new boy as Chat Noir. Adrien develops mixed feelings & Anti-Bug is back with a partner; Chat Le Blanc.

* * *

 **Chapter One**

A lovesick Marinette sighed deeply before leaning forward in her seat. Said girl rested her elbows on the surface of her desk and placed her head between the palms of her hands. She looked forward in a daze, her eyes set upon the soft, luscious blonde hair that was attached to the head of the boy who had her heart.

She sighed once more, batting her lashes as the thought of gliding her fingers through his hair began to fill her mind. She bet it was incredibly soft and that the sweet scent of his shampoo would linger on her fingers.

"Earth to Marinette," Alya called out while waving her hand in front of her distracted classmate.

Another affectionate sigh left the mouth of the dark haired girl. She continued to stare at the space between Alya's fingertips. Despite it being a blur, her mind was still longing to touch a single tress that was neatly arranged upon what she deemed a perfectly, adorable shaped head.

"Yeah Marinette, I've seen your designs. They're pretty awesome," said Adrien, turning around in his seat to look at the dazed teenager.

Upon meeting her eyes, Marinette nearly jumped from her seat. She flailed her arms out in front of her to recompose herself, but ended up elbowing her textbooks. Flustered, Marinette half heartedly scowled in pain, but quickly bit her bottom lip to prevent her pain from becoming anymore audible.

"Ye-Yeah. It's great. Awesome, even," she faltered with her heart hammering through her chest. With trembling fingers she straightened out her textbooks before flashing Adrien an awkward and toothy smile.

Adrien blinked several times with his mouth slightly agape. It took him a second to process Marinette's strange behavior. At this point though, Adrien thought Marinette's fidgety trait was just a mere part of her personality.

He brought his lips back together and curved them upwards, giving her a slight smile. He then shifted his weight around in his seat, turning around in the process to return his attention back to Ms. Bustier.

Marinette slightly groaned and slumped into her seat. She heard a slight giggle slip from between Alya's lips as she smacked her palm against her forehead.

Alya leaned towards Marinette. "Good one girl," she quietly teased with a stiff hand pressed against the edge of her mouth to prevent anyone from hearing.

Marinette groaned once more before mustering the courage to ask her best friend what she just agreed to when Adrien turned around to compliment her on her skills as a designer.

"Girl," Alya started. "You just agreed to design everyone's costume for the play."

"I-I did?" Marinette gasped as Ms. Bustier continued with reading off a few points from her clipboard.

Marinette forgot it was that time of the year again. The time where one randomly picked class was assigned to put on a play for the entire school. This year, it just happened to be Ms. Bustier's class, and right away, everyone wanted to put on a play about the adventures of LadyBug and Chat Noir.

"Don't worry about it. I know their costumes right to the bone. Especially LadyBug's."

That wasn't something that Marinette would have a problem with. After all, she was LadyBug. She was just a tad bit concerned because of her duties as a secret super hero and class representative. Now she had to add 'sew costumes' to her list. There was only so much a girl could do. On the bright side, at least she wasn't playing LadyBug. If she were put in that costume, people would find the resemblance uncanny.

Adrien, the identity behind Chat Noir felt the same way. He was actually looking forward to finding out which lucky gentleman got to play his part. In fact, he couldn't wait to see the lucky boy show just how appealing his heroic identity really was.

"Okay, Ms. Bustier. Can you just tell us who gets to play LadyBug and Chat Noir?" Chloe interrupted in an impatient tone. She crossed her arms, her piercing stare meeting the teacher's eyes. "The designer isn't as important as the stars of the show!"

Marinette rolled her eyes in dismay as Chloe continued on a raging rant. The snobby blonde even had to mention that it was unneeded to even have a designer because her "daddy was going to get the best designers in all of Paris" and that "the costumes needed to look much more authentic, and a regular, unknown teen wasn't able to do that".

"Relax, Miss Bourgeois. The roles have already been assigned, and we even have a special guest to play the role of Chat Noir," said Ms. Bustier.

This surely caused Adrien to perk up. His hidden identity as Chat Noir was popular enough to even garner the attention of a 'special guest'. A dozen famous actors popped into his mind the second Ms. Bustier completed that sentence. That wasn't what excited him the most though. Perhaps LadyBug would view him differently once she found out that he was important enough to have a VIP play his part.

"Now," Ms. Bustier continued, circling around her desk. She wiggled the handle on the first drawer, and pulled out a thick wad of stapled sheets. She then held it out in front of her before meeting the bluebell eyes of Marinette. "This is for you Marinette," she said, placing the wad on the table. "Alya and Nino gathered this information together to help with creating everyone's costumes."

Marinette's mouth dropped open. Alya and Nino were surely fired up to make this play a hundred percent perfect. Perhaps, their roles as playwright and director, respectably, would bring the two closer together by the end of the project. They were already spending hours upon hours after school, in the library, just writing the play and organizing the major and minor parts for everyone.

Marinette stood from her seat, and walked down the plight of stairs to Ms. Bustier's desk. She grabbed onto the first set of stapled sheets, and began scanning the information on the paper. As she did, Ms. Bustier circled back to the front of her desk, and began to announce everyone's assigned roles.

"We'll start off with Hawk Moth, Kim, that role is assigned to you."

"Yes!" Kim jumped up. He then held his arm out and made a fist before thrusting it backwards. "Villains are so cool!" he commented aloud, causing all eyes to shift in his direction. All eyes looked at him with disapproval. "Except Hawk Moth." He cleared his throat. "Because… he's really… bad." He rubbed his nape before slowly retreating back into his seat.

Ms. Bustier chuckled before continuing on with the list. "The akumatized individual will be, Adrien."

"Fine with me," said Adrien, shrugging his shoulders. He found it pretty nice getting to be the person that him and LadyBug always worked so diligently to save. Despite it being unreal, it was still an experience he was looking forward to. Perhaps he'd learn from it, and maybe it would help him with his future endeavors.

"LadyBug will be played by Chloe."

"No surprise there," Chloe stated. She sat up straight with her hands on her hips, and her facial expression quickly shifted into a prideful one.

Marinette's right eye slightly twitched upon hearing the announcement. She slightly tightened her fist, causing the stapled sheets in her hand to wrinkle. How could the role of LadyBug be entrusted to someone like Chloe? LadyBug was all about justice and positivity. Chloe was the exact opposite. In fact, more than half of the time, she was the harbinger of negative energy. Most people were getting akumatized because of her.

"And Chat Noir will be played by none other than, Lucas La Fontaine."

"LUCAS LA FONTAINE?!" Half of the class, mostly the girls, yelled out in sync.

The room filled with the exasperated gasps of the girls, and almost each one of them began to chew on their fingernails. Even the girls who usually weren't interested in the lives of famous people were squirming around in excitement.

"Whose Lucas La Fontaine?" Kim asked, looking to his left at Juleka who was trying to contain her own excitement.

"You don't know who Lucas La Fontaine is?!" Chloe stood up straight from her seat before jerking her head to look at Kim. "How do you not know who he is?!"

"Isn't that some kind of fountain?" Adrien tried. The name sounded all too familiar to him, but he couldn't quite place a face on it.

Marinette giggled before placing the sheets back onto the desk. "He's a singer," she said. That summed up pretty much all she knew. The only famous person she had her eyes on was Adrien, and every other famous heartthrob after him was just one giant blur.

"He's currently the most popular pop singer in all of Europe," Alya pointed out, adding in some extra information.

"AND, he's only a couple years older than us!" Chloe squealed, unable to compose herself.

"Yes, yes. Settle down, everyone." Ms. Bustier placed her clipboard on her desk before raising her hands in front of her. She motioned her arms downwards, and continued to do so until the gossiping amongst her students came to a complete stop. "Now," she called out in a much louder tone. "Will you come in Mr. La Fontaine?"

As the door sounded with a click, everyone's attention turned towards it. The door continued to open, and Marinette took this as her queue to return back to her seat. She gathered the neatly organized wad of paper into her arms, but remained still. She in her own way was curious just as everyone else to see the famous singer enter the room.

Her mouth opened up in shock as Lucas La Fontaine stepped in. With his hand still holding onto the handle, he bowed down to the rest of the class. As he stood up straight, Marinette, and everyone else could finally see a clear image of what the famous singer looked like.

He had messy dark brown hair, and captivating honey colored eyes. His skin was slightly tanned and had a rosy tint; particularly on his cheeks and the tip of his nose. He was tall, and slightly top heavy, showing that he worked out.

On top of his black, plain tee, he wore an unbuttoned red and black plaid shirt. To match, he wore a pair of jeans, and black sneakers. Hanging around his neck was a silver chain-linked necklace with a simple ring hanging around it – an accessory that was duplicated a million times for his own fans to purchase.

"Hi, my name is Lucas La Fontaine." He introduced himself with a bashful smile. Even with all that fame, he still looked as if he was nervous to be in a classroom. "I hope to do well with you in this play."

Most of the girls sat at the edge of their seats with an affectionate sigh escaping from their mouth. Ms. Bustier waved her hand, gesturing Lucas to join her at the front of the class, near Chloe's side of the room.

Marinette took this time to quietly return to her seat without disrupting the lovesick girls. She tightened her grip around the stack of paper, squeezing it towards her chest. As Ms. Bustier continued on with introducing Lucas and how he ended up taking on the role, the raven-haired designer slowly started her walk towards her seat.

Taking a few steps, she finally reached the trashcan. She lowered her head to prevent herself from disrupting anyone's view. As she took another step forward, her heel came into contact with a banana peel, causing her to lose her own footing.

Marinette yelped in surprise as she instinctively threw her arms out in the air, feeling herself fall backwards. The wad of stapled sheets began to fly around her; some hitting her face before continuing there descend to the ground below her. She looked to her right at Adrien who held his own arms in front of him to prevent any of the sharp edges from scratching his face. For a second, the two met eyes and Marinette could feel her cheeks burn with embarrassment. She looked back up, closing her own eyes to brace herself for the fall.

In one swift motion, Lucas rushed forward and held his arms beneath her, catching her in the process. Marinette reopened her eyes to see Lucas' honey colored eyes looking into her own.

"Falling for me already?" He winked before flashing her with a flirtatious grin.

* * *

 **Note:** So what do you guys think? Are you hooked? Leave a review or PM. I'd like to know what people from this fandom think, since I've never written for this show. :) Have a great day!


	2. Measurements

**Note:** Hey guys! Thanks for all the lovely reviews for the first chapter! And thanks to the Guest that pointed out my spelling error with Ms. Bustier. I corrected it the second I read your review. :) Hopefully I corrected all of them though. haha

Anyways, thanks to everyone who reviewed the first chapter! **FF77, MiniKits, Lilybean102, E, 2 Guest, Willow Lark, Korina, GuardianAngel1234567, SweetWolfXD, Darkside of the moonlight, Tiger Priestess, & Anna. You guys are awesome. :) - Of course, thanks to everyone else who also favorited and liked the story.**

* * *

 **Chapter** **Two**

Marinette rolled her eyes and stared at Lucas with disgust. She crossed her arms over her chest and looked straight ahead at the vast crowd in front of her. At the center stood Lucas who was tightly enclosed by a circle of girls. Amongst them were a few boys, sporadically standing around the area, star struck by yet another teen star whose set foot in their school.

Lucas looked so innocent and bashful the second Marinette laid her eyes on him. That instantly disappeared when he smiled at her devilishly after saving her from an almost terrible fall. After that, his narcissistic attitude broke through his shy barrier incredibly fast. The rest of the class was dedicated to listening to his stories of fame and fortune. Marinette found it fascinating to hear about all the places around the world, but hearing it from him was absolutely revolting. He then proceeded to hand replicas of his necklace to everyone in class. His book bag contained nothing but those silver chained accessories, and everyone swooned over receiving their own.

It wasn't that that bothered her the most though. While he was in the middle of reminiscing about his adventurous escapades in Hawaii, every girl in the class slowly looked up to Marinette and glowered at her. It left her absolutely confused. All he did was catch her. Why was everyone so angry with that? It's not like she meant for it to happen.

Marinette whipped around, and opened her locker. She dropped her own tacky chained necklace at the bottom before grabbing the books she needed for her next class.

"And I thought Chat Noir's flirting was annoying," she remarked causing her kwami, Tikki, to retreat from its hiding place in her pink purse.

"Oh Marinette," she started while hovering in front of her. "Maybe he's not such a bad guy. He could be overwhelmed by the amount of attention he's getting. You shouldn't judge people too fast."

"I don't know, Tikki." Marinette shoved the thick wad of paper into her locker. "Adrien didn't act that way and he's a famous model. Lucas shouldn't act any different."

"People have different reasons for their own behavior, Marinette."

The raven-haired girl groaned. She loved Tikki to pieces, but sometimes she hated when her outlook on things always remained so neutral. She never took sides, and was always one to look for the silver lining in everything.

"You know," Chloe's snarl could be heard from behind the bluenette.

Marinette instantly whispered to her kwami to hide, and Tikki immediately floated back into its confined space in Marinette's purse.

The bluenette whipped around to meet the piercing gaze of the 'beloved girl in Paris'.

"Just so you know, your little fall with Lucas was nothing, but luck. The end of the play will seal my relationship with him. I'll just have to make sure that Alya adds a kiss between LadyBug and Chat Noir." Chloe continued with a smug look before demanding Sabrina to grab an emery board from her purse. Her smirk widened as she sauntered pass the irritated bluenette. "I don't even have to worry about a thing," she said off in the distance. "My daddy will make sure that everything works out in my favor." She cackled maniacally.

"Girl, you have no idea as to how many girls want to be you right now," Alya remarked as she came to a stop in front of Marinette. Said girl crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the lockers.

Marinette slammed her locker door shut, and rolled her eyes again before letting out yet another groan. "It was an accident. Besides, I don't get what the big deal is. I fell, and he saved me. Why is every girl in our class suddenly glaring at me?"

Alya chuckled while pulling out her cell from her pocket. "I don't think that's the reason as to why everyone is glaring at you. It could be a part of it, but I think its something else."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Marinette asked as Alya draped her arm around her shoulder. She then pulled her in close and pressed play on her cellular device.

"I decided to film a bit for my LadyBlog. I know it has nothing to do with LadyBug, but he is famous, and I'm sure everyone else in school would love to hear Lucas La Fontaine talk about his memories in Hawaii."

"I'm pretty sure the entire school is hearing about it right now," Marinette said with disgust before glancing over at the growing crowd. She then returned her attention back to Alya's phone in dismay. "So what are you trying to show me?" Marinette asked, wanting to get to the point. She felt like she was reliving the events that took place just moments ago.

"Don't you notice him constantly looking near the camera?" Alya pointed out while using her thumb to follow his gaze.

"What's your point?"

"Girl, you're the one who sits next to me. I think Lucas La Fontaine might have a little crush on you."

"Me?" Marinette responded in complete disbelief. She then laughed aloud finding it quite hard to believe Alya's hypothesis. "He doesn't even know me. I just fell into his arms. What kind of person falls for someone after one encounter?"

Alya raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest. "I don't know, Marinette. Maybe someone who falls for a boy immediately after apologizing to her." She was clearly referring to her first encounter with Adrien.

"Pftt, that's different!" Marinette said with a tinge of embarrassment. "So what he was looking my way? That doesn't mean he likes me. He was probably staring at the icing in my hair."

"If that's what you want to believe," said Alya. "Besides, now that Chloe has her eyes on Lucas, I bet you're happy that you can find more time with Adrien."

Marinette stopped in her tracks, and her eyes widened. Her mind began to fill with images of the adorable blonde model. Now that Chloe had her heart set on Lucas, she could actually pair off with Adrien in class. It was almost to good to be true. "Adrien…?" Marinette whispered before letting out an affectionate sigh.

"Here we go again…" Alya said.

"Do you know what this means?!" Marinette vigorously shook her head to prevent herself from entering dreamland. She then took a couple steps forward and turned one eighty degrees before stopping in front of her best friend. While walking backwards she said, "This means that I can actually talk to him without Chloe getting in the way. This means that I can tell Adrien that I-"

"Tell me what?"

Marinette whipped around to see Adrien standing just a few inches away from her. If she walked another step, she would have bumped into him, and her back would be pressed against his own chest. She would die in complete bliss if that happened.

"Adrien…" She let out another contended sigh.

"Yeah?" He blinked several times as he stared ahead at the lovesick teenager.

Alya nudged her friend, causing Marinette to recompose herself. "Adrien!" she said aloud, causing the honey haired teen to jolt back in surprise.

"Yeah?" he repeated once more.

"I… well I… play… costume," she chuckled nervously before clearing her throat. "I need to take your measurements for the play! I-I… LadyBug and Chat Noir's costumes will be pretty easy to make, but because… you'll be a new villain I-I want to focus on your costume the most!" She had an urge to face palm once again, but resisted from doing so.

"Oh right," he said. "I'm playing the akumatized villain. Can't wait to see what you and Nino have come up with." He looked at Alya before looking back at Marinette. "How about I come over to your place after school? Then we can both see what those two have come up with?"

"That-That will be great…" Marinette said happily before watching Adrien walk down the hall.

* * *

Marinette paced around her bedroom with her hands clasped together. She raised her hands to her mouth, and began biting on the nails of her thumbs. Adrien was going to be there any moment now, and she was feeling incredibly nervous.

"Marinette!" She could hear her mother call out from the floorboards beneath her. "Your crus-, I mean your classmate, Adrien is here." She could hear a snicker escape from her mother's mouth.

A sigh escaped the nervous teen as she glowered down at the floorboards. Her mother seriously enjoyed seeing her befuddled whenever anything revolving around Adrien came up.

"Coming!" she gritted through her teeth before walking over to the attic door.

She bent down and reached for the handle of the door before flinging it right open. Upon opening the door, Marinette immediately fell backwards from meeting those entrancing emerald colored eyes.

"A-Adrien!" she called out as her heart began to spasm through her chest.

"Did I scare you?" he chuckled before letting himself into the room. He closed the door behind him before reaching out to help Marinette recover from her fall. "I guess I should have waited for you downstairs, but your mom insisted on going up."

The raven-haired girl extended her arm outwards with her hand quivering. She grabbed onto Adrien's hand and he pulled her weight from off of the floor. "I-It's fine," she said with a slight chuckle. "Seeing your face closely just sort of scared me… that's all." She bit her bottom lip before scratching the back of her head.

"Yeah, sorry my ugly face scared you." He said jokingly.

"Ugly?" she questioned. "Your face is absolutely adorab- I mean, it's great! You're a model after all!" She stammered. She seriously wanted to curl up into the corner.

Adrien blinked several times before smiling at her. He then walked over to her desk upon seeing the thick wad of paper containing the notes for the costumes. "So, what kind of akumatized villain will I be playing?" he asked.

"Well…" Marinette walked over to her desk, and pulled out the sheets that were solemnly for his character. "Alya and Nino planned everything perfectly. They based it on who you were, actually."

"What do you mean?"

"You're playing an akumatized model. Your company is angered with your modeling, and they constantly tell you to redo photo shoots until you get it right. And then finally, an akuma appears, and you become The Dark Model. You control mannequins... They're still working on your other powers."

Adrien laughed. "That's fine with me. You know, as long as you make me look cool." He winked, causing Marinette to shudder.

"Of course!" She squeaked with a reddened face. She then reached into her drawer and pulled out her measuring tape. "Shall we start measuring?"

"I'm all yours," he said before taking his place in the center of the room.

Marinette's fingers fumbled between the measuring tape as she followed Adrien. She took a gulp before facing his arm. "I guess we'll start with your arm then," she said, and Adrien immediately lifted his arm up so that it was easier for her.

After several minutes, Marinette took Adrien's measurements in complete quietness. The silence was killing her, but at least she was getting her work done.

She draped the measuring tape around her neck before walking back to her desk to write down the measurement of his in seam. All she had left to measure was his chest and waist. She placed the wooden pencil back onto her desk, and took one deep breath. She had to wrap her arms around him in order to get the measurement.

"What's next?" he asked as he waited for her.

"Just your chest and hips. Then we'll be done," she said before standing in front of him.

"Piece of cake," he raised his arms up again, so that she could snuggly fit the tape around him.

Marinette awkwardly smiled before slightly hunching over. She extended one of her arms around him, and let a few inches of the tape leave her hand, so that she could reach it from the other side.

"So how did you get into sewing and fashion?" Adrien asked as Marinette extended her other arm to reach for the flimsy tape.

"My mom," she grunted as she grasped onto the tape. "She bought me a ton of those sewing kits for kids when I was younger. I loved making everything she bought for me, so she ended up buying me a sewing machine, and it just went from there."

She pulled her hands back with her fingers gliding along the tape as it began to envelope his body.

"That's cool," he said. "I think you'd make an awesome designer if you decide to stick with it. I bet you'd be better than my dad someday too."

"You think so?" she asked as she began to take a mental note of his measurement in her mind. She then glanced upwards, and her eyes immediately made contact with his.

"Yeah…" he lowered his voice, and Marinette suddenly felt hypnotized by his strikingly good looks.

She bit her bottom lip, and slowly started to tiptoe. It's like she suddenly couldn't control her actions, and she felt Adrien doing the same thing, except he was leaning downwards, until their faces were just a few inches apart from one another.

"Why don't I turn on the TV?" he suggested after clearing his throat.

"Right!" Marinette squeaked while rapidly blinking. She then shook her head before stepping away from him to write the next measurement. As she did, Adrien stepped away and grabbed the remote control from her bed. He turned on the TV, and the room echoed with the voice of the news reporter. Marinette finished writing the number in her notebook before joining Adrien in front of the TV.

"Who is this new cat, and is he a villain or a superhero?" The lady on the screen said through her microphone. Behind her, footage of a male gallivanting around the tops of the buildings in Paris was shown. He looked exactly like Chat Noir, except his suit was white with a silver bell. And, instead of a silver staff, it was a black one.

"Who is that?" Marinette asked as she watched the boy run atop another building with amazing speed. "Did Chat Noir change his outfit?"

"I doubt it…" Adrien grumbled with his arms crossed. "I bet he's another akumatized villain."

"The suspicious man that looks like Chat Noir has stopped at the Eiffel Tower. Is he planning something there?" The lady asked as the footage of the white cat flying throughout the city broke off into live footage of the reporter heading towards the Eiffel Tower. "LadyBug!" she called out. "Chat Noir! If this is another villain, I suggest you guys be here ASAP!"

"I have to use the washroom!" The two yelled out in sync.

Marinette raised her eyebrow at Adrien. "You can go first," she said, but he was quick to follow.

The two looked away in embarrassment. She had to get to the Eiffel Tower, but she couldn't leave Adrien hanging. If he went to the washroom, what would she do if he came back to see that she was no longer there.

"You can go first," he encouraged her. "I don't have to go that badly. I can wait." He grinned awkwardly.

"A-Alright," she hesitated. "I won't take long!" She ran over to the attic door and flung it wide open.

That was a complete lie. She was going to take as long as she needed to get rid of the newly akumatized villain.

* * *

 **So what do you guys think? :)**


	3. Chat Le Blanc

**NOTE:** Hey guys! New chapter. It's been awhile with this one. Still working out possible ideas... I'm not really good at adventurous/plot twists kinda things so... it takes me some time.

 _ **Thanks to everyone who reviewed since last! - Darkside of the moonlight, Brokenwings35, PlainOldBoring, Tiger Priestess, Sweet-Strawberry-09, KrazyKatgirl213, Shadow of the Elements, Marichatahipper325, Q-A Authoress, librosmysticos, hazle40490, Lilly flower forever.**_

* * *

 **Chapter Three**

LadyBug flung her yoyo, using it to grapple onto the curved part of the nearest streetlamp. Thrusting her body outwards, she slammed her foot against the brick wall of one of the shops in the shopping district, scaling it till she was on the roof. She took a moment to rebalance herself before she began running on the rooftops, her eyes set on her destination. As she reached the edge of the building, she flung her yoyo once more, grappling onto the nearest protruding pole.

If Chat Le Blanc was another akumatized villain, Chat Noir surely had to do something with it. She just knew it.

"Good afternoon milady."

And speaking of the catty devil.

Mid swing, LadyBug glanced over to her left to see Chat Noir jumping from building to building, using his pole to aide with his travels.

"What did you do?" she didn't hesitate to ask. Don't get her wrong. She wasn't mad or anything. She's had her fair share of causing the negative energy to form a new akumatized individual. If Chat Noir was able to give her any information on their current predator, then they were going to be able to deakumatize Chat Le Blanc in a heartbeat.

LadyBug looked forward, feeling the wind brush through her hair as their destination became much more apparent.

"You know," Chat Noir said through shallow breaths. "I don't think I did anything." She heard him grunt from jumping over an obstacle.

"You sure? You didn't make anyone angry?" she asked, as she swung high up into the air, bending her knees and bringing them closely to her chest. With the momentum in her favor she somersaulted in the air a couple times before sticking the landing at the base of the tower. She then looked to her left at Chat Noir who just landed beside her.

"Milady," he said. "I think I'd know if I did something wrong."

"Remember Copycat?"

"Remember Anti-Bug and Volpina?" He shot back.

LadyBug groaned before glaring at her superhero companion. She couldn't help those attacks. She wasn't very fond of Chloe, and Lila was trying to snatch Adrien away from her. Even if her crush was one-sided, she believed that Adrien belonged with her, and only her.

"Let's just get this over with," she said before running forwards, and flinging her yoyo up at the beams of the tower. Chat Noir began doing the same, except using his staff to aide him with scaling the tower.

In a matter of minutes, the two found themselves on the highest floor, both taking a battling stance. They were ready for any surprise attacks that were going to come their way.

LadyBug narrowed her eyes at the man in the white suit. He stood there, facing the sunset, seemingly unwavered by their presence. She glanced over at Chat Noir, using her eyes as a means to communicate with him. With a few blinks, and shifting stares, it didn't take long for her partner to understand that they should corner him from each side. She used her fingers to count down from three, and as she made a fist, the two slowly began to step over in the opposite direction.

With each step she took, closer to the right of Chat Le Blanc's side, she felt her heart quicken in pace. His back was against them, and the way he stood was so calm. LadyBug just knew that the second her or Chat Noir pounced; he was going to unleash his powers on them. And if he was anything like Chat Noir, he must have had his own power that somehow resembled Chat Noir's Cataclysm.

But something seemed rather odd about this villain compared to the rest. The rest had a goal, a purpose, and were filled with an immense amount of hatred. They were quick to act on their emotions. To get revenge on the one person who made them that way. From what she's seen so far, Chat Le Blanc hasn't made a move yet. All he did was pounce through the city, and take his place on this very monumental tower. What was he trying to do?

"LadyBug." he said, finally breaking the tense silence. "Chat Noir. The infamous heroes of Paris."

LadyBug took a step back, startled by Chat Le Blanc's voice. She then shook her head, clenched her teeth, and tightened her fists; ready to find the object that was imprisoning the black butterfly.

Her current enemy turned around, facing the two that stood just a couple feet away on either side of him. She watched as he clasped his hands, and pursed his lips before taking the time to look from her to her partner. He then unclasped his hands and glided his fingers through his dark brown tresses before meeting her eyes with his honey colored ones.

"Are you two trying to attack me?" he asked with an innocent smile on his face. "I didn't do anything. For all we know, I could be another Miraculous holder." He then smirked.

LadyBug's eyes widened upon hearing the last two words escape from his mouth. What did he know about the Miraculous'? The smug look on his face made it seem like he knew more than what he should. But Lila also knew a thing or two. After the whole Volpina accident, the two became extra cautious over any possible 'superheroes' trying to pass on as a member of the group. Perhaps he was just as tricky as her. Lately, their batch of akumatized people was a bit harder to handle than usual.

"What are you trying to do?" LadyBug asked, her eyes glossing over the silver bell that hung around his neck. _Could it possibly be there?_

"I just wanted to meet the both of you." Chat Le Blanc smiled before walking over to the bluenette. He walked in circles around her, making her feel uncomfortable by his presence. But he hasn't done anything yet, and if it continued this way, maybe she would be able to pinpoint the location of his butterfly. She hoped that Chat Noir was patient enough to think the same thing. As she glanced over to her left to look at him, he had a bitter look on his face, almost as if he was ready to use his Cataclysm on Chat Le Blanc.

"Hmmm…" Chat Le Blanc pondered. "Your hair. Your eyes. They almost resemble…" He trailed off before coming to a halt behind her. "Well, I suppose this first encounter is good enough for me," he said while taking a few steps forward to stand in front of her. He then reached into a hidden pocket of his suit. As LadyBug squinted her eyes, she noticed that he was wearing a utility belt - a utility belt that perfectly matched the color of his suit and the contour of his body.

"La-LadyBug!" Chat Noir hesitated in a panic, and as he did LadyBug flung her yoyo backwards, bringing herself away from Chat Le Blanc.

She was unsure of what he was going to pull out from his pocket, but for all they knew, it could be a weapon of some sort, or even the very item that was containing his butterfly. LadyBug groaned, feeling like they could have ended this sooner if her partner in crime didn't interrupt.

Chat Noir did a couple black flips before standing next to her. "Sorry, Milady," he said. "Just couldn't handle him hitting on my _purr_ incess."

"Easy kitten." Chat Le Blanc said, holding his hands up.

"Let's just find the akuma," she replied, ignoring the other cat in front of her. "I have somewhere to be." She knew she's had to be gone for almost a half hour now. Adrien was going to think she was pooping. Gosh, she just never was going to be attractive enough for him.

"Already ahead of you." Chat Noir winked at her before charging forwards at his target.

"We can't be civilized?" Chat Le Blanc questioned as he dodged the staff that was constantly swinging at him.

"We're just trying to help you," said LadyBug as she ran forward, throwing her own fist at the white kitten, trying to secure at least one of his arms so she could get ahold of his silver bell.

"Two on one? Now that's just not fair." Chat Le Blanc stated, dodging all their attacks with ease.

For a couple minutes, they continued with their endless amounts of attacks, but nothing was even in the slightest bit getting close to landing one hit.

LadyBug stood there frustrated, trying to get ahold of her breathing as Chat Noir did the same. She hadn't the slightest clue about Le Blanc's motives, how he originated, and what could possibly be containing his butterfly. The item was usually sentimental of the sorts, and she could see absolutely nothing on him that could possibly contain it. This was going absolutely nowhere.

"Tired already?" he said with a wide grin. "It's my turn then." He turned his face to the bluenette and flashed her with a smile. "Sorry love," he said before reaching into a pocket on his utility belt, and throwing, what looked to be a white rectangular band in her direction.

"Wha-" LadyBug tried to question as the white band clung to her wrist. She suddenly felt her body being pulled backwards by an impressive amount of force. _What is this?_ She looked down to the band that was sparking around the edges. She tried pulling her wrist forward, but the force pulling her back was much stronger. She grabbed onto the band, trying to take it away from her wrist. "Ugh-" She groaned in pain as her back slammed against a metal truss of the tower. "What is this?!" She began squirming, trying to wriggle her way free from the band.

"My own invention," he said. "I wouldn't wiggle so much if I were you. Thing tightens under pressure."

"What?!"

"It wouldn't be much fun if you were able to get out that easily, now would it?" He winked.

"Why you-" Chat Noir called out in anger, before charging at him again, swinging his staff much faster than before.

"One on one. Now that's more like it." He grinned once more while easily dodging all of Chat Noir's attacks. As he continued to dodge, he pulled out his own staff, and began to counteract all of Chat Noir's moves.

Before her very eyes, Chat Le Blanc's unfathomable skills overwhelmed her partner and in seconds his staff was taken away from him, and tossed off of the tower. "It didn't have to be this way," Chat Le Blanc said before reaching into his utility belt once more. His belt blended in with his suit so perfectly. From where LadyBug stood, she couldn't even see it. She couldn't even make out some protruding edge signifying the shape of whatever he was holding. She couldn't even tell how many compartments were attached to it. He was becoming much more mysterious with each passing second.

"I'm sorry Noir, but you aren't my goal here," he said before reaching into another part on his hidden belt.

LadyBug stood there, once again trying to wriggle the band away from her wrist. He was right though. The more she tried, the more it hurt. She could feel the blood no longer properly flowing to her hand, and all she could feel was a static like feeling slowly edging her hand into complete numbness.

She stopped, trying to relax her body before turning her attention back to Chat Le Blanc. He had the upper hand now. She watched as he used his staff to send Chat Noir edging backwards towards the railings. Her partner constantly tried to free himself from his clutches, but every time he tried to flip away from him, Chat Le Blanc's staff would prevent him from doing so.

"Ready?" Chat Le Blanc asked.

"Huh?"

In a flash of a moment, Chat Le Blanc threw a small white ball from his hands, distracting Chat Noir. LadyBug watched as Chat Le Blanc took this moment to defeat his sparring partner.

"Chat Noir!" she cried out as Chat Le Blanc dug his staff into her partner's chest. This sent Chat Noir backwards, falling off of the tower. "CHAT!" she cried out once again, her mind spiraling in a complete panic. She tugged on the band once more, but felt the pain pulsating throughout her body.

Suddenly, the white ball descended, following after Chat Noir, and all that LadyBug could hear was a loud grunt from her partner and the sounds of rope scraping against once another.

"What did you do?" she asked in anger.

"Relax." Chat Le Blanc sounded amused. "Just tied him up to a truss. Your partner isn't dead, and I'm pretty sure he wouldn't die that easily." He sauntered his way over to LadyBug, his eyes set on her wrist. "I told you not to struggle," he said before snapping his fingers. In an instant, the band retreated, and was pulled back into his grip.

LadyBug sighed with relief before wriggling her fingers, and twisting her wrist around in circular motions. It surely was going to feel sore for a while, but at least she didn't have her hand fall off.

"Now," he said, reaching into the same area as he did earlier. "I just wanted to give you this," he smiled before bowing down to her.

LadyBug stood there with wide eyes as he pulled a white rose from one of his pockets. "This is for you, love," he grinned widely, urging her to take it. LadyBug held it between her fingertips, inspecting the petals for some sort of clue.

"It's just a rose," he said before turning around to walk away. "I did say that all I wanted to do was meet you. I guess I found out a bit more than intended. That definitely speeds things up." He finished off before pouncing on the railing.

LadyBug took a step forward. She was ready to follow him if she had too.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," he said, noticing her actions. "As much as I would like that, I'll hurt the civilians if you do. And trust me. You don't want that." He snapped his fingers once more, this time pressing his thumb against his middle finger instead of his index. With that, he jumped off the tower, disappearing from the scene.

"AHHH-" She heard Chat Noir yelp, followed by his footsteps and movement bringing him back to the top of the tower.

"A rose?" He scowled after rejoining her. "Sorry _purr_ incess, but I don't approve of you fooling around with another cat, but me." He took the rose from her grip, and LadyBug immediately snatched it away from him.

"Who said you and I fool around with each other?" She raised an eyebrow before wagging the rose in his face. "It's our only clue about him and his motives."

"It's just a rose."

"Oh Chat, don't let your jealously show too much. It makes you less charming," she teased as her earrings began to beep. She raised a hand to her ear, as Chat Noir's own Miraculous began to sound aloud as well. "We're just going to have to wait until he strikes again," she said before running towards the railings and flinging her yoyo off in the distance. "Bug out!"

* * *

Marinette closed the windows inside of her washroom before taking a glance of her appearance in the mirror. She raised her wrist up, noticing the swelling. That was something she had to somehow explain to her mother at some point. As for now though, she had to worry about the boy she left in her room, all alone for who knows how long.

"Marinette," Tikki hovered over to her. "There's something off about Chat Le Blanc."

"Other than he's far more skilled than Chat Noir and I combined?" Marinette asked while applying a small amount of pressure to her wounded area. She was going to have to apply some ice to it to reduce the swelling.

"I couldn't sense an akuma, Marinette," Tikki said. "He could be different from the rest, but…" Tikki hesitated to continue. "Bu-But, next time you see him, I need you to spar with him a bit longer. I just need to make sure."

"Make sure of what?" Marinette asked, turning her attention away from the mirror, and onto the kwami hovering beside her.

"I'm not sure yet, but I'll let you know when the time comes."

Marinette raised an eyebrow, curious as to what was going on in her little kwami's mind. "You can tell me Tikki."

"I know, Marinette, but I just want to make sure."

Marinette sighed. She wanted to know what was going on in her kwami's tiny head. But she supposed, for now, she could just wait until the next time she met with Chat Le Blanc.

Marinette looked over to the white rose she placed on the edge of the bathtub.

Why would he even give her a rose?

* * *

 **So what do you guys think? We have a bit of an introduction to who Chat Le Blanc is and what he is capable of. The only question is, what is he up to and what does he want? hmm...**


	4. Roles

**NOTE:** After some time, here is chapter four! I do apologize for taking so long, but I am working on other stories and I'm focusing on them much more. **I would say after I am done with Dare Night v2:0, I'll be focusing most of my attention to this one. :)**

I just want to point out, the romance between Adrien and Marinette will be slow going, but I do hope you're interesting in everything else... like Chat Le Blanc. I put Le Blanc instead of just Blanc cause it sounds cooler to me. haha :P

 _ **Thanks to everyone who left a review since last - GuardianAngel1234567, librosmysticos, Yoko89, Lilly flower forever, JayFan67, Brokenwings35, axelialea, FrostSentry150, Tiger Priestess, Q-A Authoress, Nanami-Hime, fangirl-mode-on, Carat532, & 2 Guests.**_

Unfortunately, with this story, I won't be asking questions about your curiosity towards the events in the story just because I want you guys wondering. If something is unclear though, I will answer those. Thanks! :)

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter Four**

"Keep still Kim," Marinette ordered, measuring Kim's waist. "Don't blame me if you end up having a wardrobe malfunction during opening night." The bluenette ducked beneath one of Kim's flailing arms. For a tough guy, he was unable to keep still whenever Marinette grazed his ribs. Marinette was only trying to ensure perfect measurements and at this rate, she was never going to get to measure Chloe or Lucas. The two main characters were currently on the stage rehearsing their lines and the second Kim was supposed to rehearse his own monologue, she was going to have to measure the two.

The sporty teen let out another hearty laugh before raising his index finger to wipe the tear that was streaming down the right side of his face. "S-Sorry, Marinette," he tried while squirming within the tape measure that was pressed against his body.

Marinette loosened her grip on the tape, letting it fall from Kim's body. She pushed her bottom lip forward, and exhaled loudly while resting a hand on her hip. The small amount of air that escaped her lips caused a small portion of her bangs to rise from her forehead before falling back into place.

"I'll give you five minutes to recompose yourself," she said, watching the brunette whose laughter slowly began to falter.

"Al-Alright," Kim complied, wiping away any more tears that escaped his eyes.

Marinette shook her head in shame before walking away from the ticklish teen to grab her water bottle from the table that was a few feet away from her. As she reached the table, a small smile formed upon her face. If Alix knew that Kim was an extremely ticklish fellow, she could use it to her advantage the next time they had a competition. Alix tickling Kim. That surely was a sight that she would love to see.

"Hey Marinette." A hand was placed on her shoulder as she took a swig from her glass bottle.

Marinette whipped around to see Adrien standing in front of her with a look of sorrow on his face. She swallowed hard, causing her mouthful of water to trickle uncomfortably down her throat. Marinette formed a fist around her bottle cap before pounding on her chest as an attempt to fix the burning sensation that was overtaking her throat. She almost felt herself choking, and it was all because Adrien was in her presence again. She always found herself doing things oddly or wrong whenever he was close to her. She never thought that something as simple as drinking water would become such a difficult task.

Marinette pursed her lips, trying to prevent a cough from escaping her mouth. Her body told her otherwise and in the end, she let out a dry, hacking cough.

"Are you okay?" asked Adrien, taking a step forward and sliding his hand down to her upper back. He began to rub her back in circular motions, patting her every now and then as she continued with her waves of coughs. "Note to self, don't bother Marinette when she's drinking water."

Marinette lazily smiled as her body reverted back into a comfortable state. Adrien pulled his hand back as she twisted the cap back onto her bottle and placed it on the table behind her. She giggled nervously, mentally slapping her forehead while feeling a tingle on her back where Adrien just touched her.

"Worry don't about it," she said. "Uhh…" She fumbled with her fingers. "I mean, don't worry about it!" She mentally slapped herself again.

The honey blonde stared at her with confusion before shaking his head and smiling at her with tight lips. "I just wanted to say sorry about yesterday."

"Yesterday?" Marinette glanced over to the side before refocusing her attention back to him.

"Yeah," he said. "I left your house when you were in the washroom. I don't want you to think that I was bored or anything. I was just really interested in Chat Le Blanc and somehow ended up with the crowd near the Eiffel Tower."

"Oh… Don't worry about it." Marinette smiled. "To be honest, I did the same… I guess I just didn't see you there."

Truth be told, Marinette honestly forgot that Adrien was in her home the day before. That was so unlike her, but her mind was occupied over the mysterious Chat Le Blanc, and the white rose that he gave her. Tikki's speculation over Chat Le Blanc not being an akumatized villain also pushed Adrien away from her thoughts. She practically spent the entire night sitting on her chair, staring at the white rose that she placed into a vase. She thought that if she stared at it hard enough, maybe she would be able to find a clue about the mysterious cat. The two cats were right though. It was just a rose. Nothing special about it other than being a beautiful flower.

"On the bright side, you got all my measurements."

"Yeah." Marinette smiled. "I just wish that I could get Kim's measurements as easily as I got yours." The bluenette leaned over to her right, taking a peek at Kim who was checking himself out in the body-sized mirror. He looked so cool and tough now, but the second she would wrap that tape around him, he was going to burst into another fit of laughter.

Adrien chuckled before taking a glance at the jock. "I can help you if you want," he offered. "Or we can get Alix to help. I think it's obvious that he always tries to keep his cool when she's around."

She grinned. "You see that too?"

"Doesn't everyone?"

His sly expression caused the apples of her cheeks to redden. Feeling weak in the knees, Marinette leaned back until her lower back was pressed against the edge of the table. She placed her hands behind her, resting the palms of her hands against the cold wood, but the action prompt her to yank herself forward.

She yelped in pain, grabbing onto the wrist that was injured from the events that took place the day before. As she stumbled forward, she fell into Adrien's arms, and the concerned blonde helped her to regain her footing.

"Are you okay Marinette?" he asked as the bluenette kept a tight grip on her injury. She moved her wrists in circular motions, trying to ease the pain.

"Yeah, I'm fine…" she replied, letting go of her wrist to inspect any new signs of swelling.

Seriously, Chat Le Blanc was someone to be wary of. She almost lost a hand because of him.

"Whoa," Adrien marveled at her injury. "Are you alright? How did this happen? Do you need me to bring you to the nurse's office?" He reached out to her wrist, brushing a finger next to her bruised area.

Marinette flinched, the contact triggering a sharp pain from beneath her skin. "No, no…" She shooed his arm away. "It just needs time to heal, that's all."

"Are you sure?" Adrien asked, baffled. "Because if you don't treat this right away, it might do more harm to your body."

Marinette chewed on her bottom lip. Adrien's amount of worry was making her feel uneasy. As much as she adored all the attention from him, it wasn't worth it when his face was plastered with concern.

"I'll be fine." She pulled her arm away, tugging on her sleeve to prevent Adrien from inspecting it any further.

He sighed. "How did this happen anyway?"

"Oh… uhm… Something fell on it when I was helping my dad at the bakery," she lied. "I'll be fine," she said for what felt like the umpteenth time.

"If you say so," Adrien said, unconvinced while shrugging his shoulders.

It was times like these that made Marinette wish that she were able to tell someone her secret. It didn't have to be Adrien. It could be Alya or her parents. She just wished that she didn't have to lie about things that revolved around her other life as LadyBug.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I'M NOT GOOD ENOUGH?!" A shout was heard from behind the red curtains.

Marinette perked up, a perplexed look written on her face. Her eyes glossed over Adrien's facial expression that seemed to be wondering the same thing as her. _What's going on?_

She hasn't gone over the script, so she hadn't the slightest idea as to what the play really entailed, but judging from that voice, it clearly belonged to Chloe. Perhaps they were rehearsing some dramatic scene. Chloe did request to have a love line between the two characters, and under Ms. Bustier's command, Nino and Alya added it to the story. Marinette barfed at the idea. LadyBug and Chat Noir an item? As if. But of course, this was for entertainment. They had to make their characters a billion times more entertaining than what they really were.

"I'M CHLOE BOURGEOIS!" Chloe's voice echoed through the auditorium in a shrill tone.

Marinette's eyes widened. That line was definitely not in the script. Either Chloe's diva like attitude was pushing its limits or her and Lucas La Fontaine were caught in some kind of quarrel. She hoped it wasn't the second of the two. As much as Paris was told to please the daughter of the mayor, Lucas was a far more important figure than her. Everyone already knew that he was going to play Chat Noir and if their class failed to deliver their promise, they would have an empty theatre filled with the buzzing sounds of the lights on opening day.

Marinette glanced all around her at the few students who were backstage, working on their own assignments. Most of them dropped the things they were working on to run towards the edge of the stage where the curtain was slightly drawn. Adrien did the same and Marinette followed behind him to witness the commotion. Marinette moved the curtain aside, squirming her way pass a few of the students to get a better view of what was happening. She stood between Rose and Juleka who were still holding onto the props they were making for the show. Juleka looked like she was ready to grab a bucket of popcorn, anticipating Chloe's downfall from a famous European star. On the other hand, Rose looked like she was ready to take cover behind Kim in case Chloe was ready to throw the nearest object off the stage.

Marinette turned her head away from her fellow students to see the two on stage with Alya and Nino standing just a few feet away from the pair. She could tell that they both did not want to try to calm down the queen. Ms. Bustier wasn't even here to aide with the situation. If she remembered, she went to grab the students a snack for working so hard.

"What do you mean I'm not good enough for the role!?" Chloe demanded. "I won this part fair and square! I deserve the part." She scrunched her rolled up script within her tightening fist and glared at Lucas with her deathly stare.

Lucas was unwavered by Chloe's attempts to control him with her mind. He stood there calmly, meeting her eyes with a look of boredom. He ran his fingers through his messy tresses before pointing down at the script that was still suffering from Chloe's grip. "You're ruining Nino and Alya's hard work," he simply stated.

The deterred blonde lowered her eyes at the script in her hand. It looked like she dug her nails into it, ruining a few of the pages. She scrunched it even tighter before bringing it up to her view. "We aren't talking about the script!" she gritted through her teeth before tossing the script to the side. "We are talking about you and why you don't think I'm fit to play LadyBug!"

Rose yelped quietly as the script slid towards her, brushing up against her toes. This caused her to shuffle to the side, taking cover behind Kim who was just as beguiled as Juleka.

"Oh, right." Lucas pursed his lips before setting his own script on the wooden stool beside him. He then clasped his hands together and began to circle the blonde. "You're the mayor's daughter," he pointed out. "I'm going to assume that you got this part because of that very reason."

"What's your point?" Chloe crossed her arms, turning her head, trying to follow Lucas' every move.

"I'm sorry to say this, but LadyBug is a hero. She's supposed to be courageous, kind-hearted, and willing to put everyone else above her." He made one last turn before stopping in front of the blonde. A sly grin then overtook his face. "Chloe, you're nothing but a spoiled, rich, brat. You don't possess any of those heroic qualities. Therefore, you are not fit for the role."

Marinette raised her hand to her mouth, covering the smile that she was trying so hard to suppress. A few gasps echoed throughout the auditorium, followed by a few giggles. Lucas just said what everyone wanted to say to Chloe for years. And Chloe couldn't do anything about it. It was almost like a dream come true.

Chloe furrowed her brows while clenching both of her fists. Her body began to tremble, her face shifting into a deep shade of crimson. Her body screamed anger, but her face read humility. She was unable to find the right words for a comeback. Instead she jerked her head to the students gathered at the side, shushing them with her deathly glare before snapping back to Lucas' honey colored eyes.

"Who do you think is suitable for the role then?" she asked, trying to relinquish her anger. She unclenched her fist, her body reverting back into a calm state.

"That's easy," Lucas answered. "Marinette."

"WHAT!?" Chloe's jaw dropped, her calm façade deteriorating after a few mere seconds.

Marinette was just as shocked as her. Her eyes were bulging out of her sockets, a thread of saliva ready to drip from the corner of her mouth. The bluenette stuck her tongue out to bring her bodily liquids back into her mouth. She pressed her lips together while swallowing hard. She couldn't believe that she was being pulled into the hurricane. She didn't want too. She wanted to be like Kim and Juleka, watching from the sidelines, amused.

"Why me?" Marinette squeaked as she watched Lucas saunter over to her. "You don't even know me."

"Yeah!" Chloe agreed, her voice cracking. "You don't know her!"

"I just know she's the perfect fit for the role," Lucas replied, meeting Marinette's gaze. Marinette blinked a few times before slightly squinting her eyes. There was something going on behind his innocent hazel colored eyes. Marinette could sense it, but she didn't know what. His stare was giving her a sense of panic. Unease. Trepidation. He was someone to be wary of.

Lucas looked down to Marinette's hand while extending his arm. He loosely held onto her hand, dragging her over to the center of the stage. "Nino, Alya. If it's alright with you, I would like Marinette to play the role of LadyBug."

"Uhm…" Alya pursed her lips, unable to contain her excitement. Marinette profusely shook her head at her friend, but her body language was of no use. Before she knew it, Alya agreed and Chloe stormed off angrily towards the exit with Sabrina rushing after her.

"Everyone!" Alya called out. "Back to your stations!" She then looked over to Marinette and Lucas who stood at the center of the stage. "You two stay put. I just have to rearrange a few things on the script with Nino. It won't take long."

Within minutes, everyone returned to their place, completing their own tasks. Nino and Alya disappeared backstage to mark off a few things on their current script. This left the two alone on stage. Something that Marinette didn't want.

Marinette grimaced before turning her attention to Lucas. "Why would you do that?" she asked. "Why would you make me LadyBug? I never wanted the role."

"I'm just doing what I think is fit for the play," he said.

"You're a singer! Not an actor! You're not an expert with these things," she retorted. "Now I have to face Chloe's consequences!"

"I don't get why you're so angry, Marinette. I could see it in your eyes. You don't want Chloe playing the role."

"But I don't want to play it either!"

"Why not?" he asked, a grin creeping its way back onto his face.

"Because… Because…" Marinette stopped to think. She couldn't tell him that it was because she was LadyBug. As much as she loved being the masked superhero, she didn't want to play it in the school play. She just wanted to be Marinette in school. Nothing else.

She sighed as her eyes fell. Her eyes lingered over to the hand that was still holding onto her own. Surprised, Marinette pulled back, freeing her hand from his grip. She cried in pain, her bruised wrist suffering the consequences. She grabbed onto her wrist, once again feeling a sharp pain residing beneath her skin.

"Are you alright?" Lucas asked, inching forward.

"I'm fine!" she said loudly, causing him to back away.

"No you're not. There's something wrong with your wrist. Let me see it." He placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her.

"I'm fine, really." Marinette said, again. She pulled away from Lucas, but he was so eager to help.

He placed his hand on her shoulder again and gave her a look of sympathy. All he wanted to do was help. Just like Adrien. Why didn't she just accept Adrien's help earlier? Right now they would be in the nurse's office together, and Marinette wouldn't have been pulled into being LadyBug.

"Let me see it," he said, holding up his free hand with the palm facing up.

Marinette gulped, unsure if she should trust a boy she barely knew. But she didn't want anyone else knowing about her injury. She argued with her thoughts for a couple minutes, but in the end, she pulled her sleeve up and placed her wrist in Lucas' hand.

"Hmm…" he said, sounding amused. He carefully inspected her bruise, moving her wrist from side to side to see all the damage. "Interesting," he muttered.

"Interesting?" Marinette perked up. "What's interesting?"

"Oh… nothing," he paused momentarily. "It's just this mark here almost looks like a rose, doesn't it?"

"What?"

Marinette pulled her wrist away from his grasp and raised it up to her view. She squinted her eyes, trying to find what Lucas found. While she continued to inspect her arm, Lucas walked away, off the stage to his bag that was sitting in one of the seats in the front row.

Marinette looked over the small patches of bruises over taking her wrist. All she could see was black and purple spots, some alone, some enveloping one another. She slowly turned her wrist, her lips slightly parting as her eyes finally found the imprint of a rose on her skin.

It was small, faint, and simple. It was no more than a cm in length and width, and it was an outline of a rose as seen from above. It looked like a small tattoo branding her skin, and could only be seen because the bruises on it or around it was a much more lighter purple than the rest of her skin. How could she not have seen it before? And why was Lucas able to see it right away?

Marinette lowered her arm before taking a glance at Lucas who was running back up the stage with a white tube in his hand.

"Here," he said after rejoining her. "This should help." He opened up the tube and squirted what looked to be a type of lotion onto the palm his hand.

"Uhm, I'm not sure if-"

Without her consent, Lucas gently grabbed onto Marinette's arm and began smearing the concoction all over her wrist.

Marinette's eyes widened. The bruises were still there, yet her wrist felt good as new. She wriggled it around, feeling like she wasn't even injured in the first place.

"What? How did-"

"My mother owned an apothecary shop. She came across a lot of healing herbs." He then shoved the tube of healing ointment into her free hand. "Keep it. Follow the directions on the tube and you'll be better in no time."

"Oh… thanks," was all she managed to say. She continued to wriggle her wrist, amused that she was able to move it around in circular motions without the need to tightly grip onto it.

"Look, Marinette," he said, capturing her attention. "I don't know what I did to make you hate me right away. I mean… I saved you from falling when we first met. If anything you should be thanking me."

Marinette suppressed her need to roll her eyes. She was thankful for Lucas' help, but his vibe was so… egotistic. She didn't like guys like that. She could barely get by with Kim and his constant need to show off his skills with everything.

"I'm holding a dinner tonight at the Le Grand Paris for the cast of the play. I want to get to know the people I'll be acting with. We can review our lines together with everyone. Just please; don't judge me when you barely know me. I'm not that bad of a guy."

Marinette sighed. Well, she couldn't turn down a request like that. "But… that's Chloe's hotel… I don't think she would like seeing me there."

"I have a lot of guards. You'll be safe."

"Well, I'm not very good at acting. I guess I should start practicing right away."

"Great," he said with a smirk. "I'll see you later then." He brushed his index finger against her chin before turning away, walking in the direction where Nino and Alya were revising the script. He then looked back at her, giving her a nod before disappearing behind the curtains.

Marinette grimaced while rubbing her chin. She couldn't put a finger on it, but there was something about Lucas that seemed oddly familiar.

* * *

 **NOTE:** And that brings us to the end of another chapter!

 **I just want to say, Merry Christmas & Happy New Years guys! **

**Remember to leave your thoughts and speculations in a Review or PM! Also remember to like and follow if you haven't. :)**


	5. AntiBug

**NOTE:** **Hey guys! Next chapter! :) I just wanted you to know that this story doesn't really follow every event in the show. I'm just saying that now because a few things may be canon, but other things may be completely different.**

 **Someone had asked when I update this story. I don't really have a set date. It's just random. It seems like it's once a month right now. I just update when I want too/can. :)**

 _ **Thanks to everyone who left a review! - DARK-EVIL-GODS-21 (Guest), axelialea, Q-A Authoress, Carat532, Tiger Priestess, librosmysticos, noirgirl, Poksie, CorinneF, ctebalan, Random fan, Pikachu, Kathrine Heart.**_

 **I didn't think that any of you guys would actually ship Marinette with Lucas. haha. I thought I'd receive a lot of "NO's", but its nice to see that some of you guys support (not that there's something to support there...)**

 **Enjoy the chapter! :)**

* * *

 **Chapter Five**

Marinette stood across the street, glancing up at the Bourgeois hotel. She swallowed hard and clasped her hands close to her chest. She then turned one eighty and took cover behind a nearby tree.

 _You can do this._ She took a deep breath. _For crying out loud, you're LadyBug! Chloe can't hurt you!_

She furrowed her brows, nodded her head and made a fist in determination. She didn't feel comfortable going into her predator's territory. Not after what happened earlier today. If she knew the blonde as well as she thought, Chloe was surely going to do something to her for stealing her thunder. And Marinette didn't want to go through any of that. It was going to be social suicide – Chloe's specialty.

"Marinette?"

Marinette felt her body tense up. Instinctively, Marinette parted her legs, and bent her knees. She stiffly held her arms out in front of her; ready to attack a minion that Chloe could have possibly sent out to capture her.

She looked up, her eyes falling upon the blonde tresses that were slightly bouncing with every movement. She lowered her gaze, her cheeks radiating a shade of soft pink.

Noticing her battle stance, the honey blonde came to a stop. He pulled his hands out and held his palms out in front of him as a defense mechanism. "Whoa," he said. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Marinette relaxed the second her mind processed who was standing in front of her. It was Adrien. She sighed in relief and fell backwards, resting her back against the trunk of the tree. Now that she thought about it, Chloe really wasn't the type to send out thugs or hunters to do her bidding. At least, Marinette hoped that Chloe wasn't that kind of person.

"Sorry," Marinette mumbled. "I just don't want to face Chloe's wrath. I don't think I've seen her this angry before."

"Considering that she just got embarrassed by one of her favorite stars, she's most likely going to lock herself in her room for a couple days. And then she'll start plotting her revenge," he joked, causing Marinette to frown.

Adrien coughed and his face fell. It was a little too soon for him to be making jokes about what happened. With downcast eyes, he raised one of his hands to rub his nape. "Sorry," he managed to say.

"It's fine." Marinette tried her best to muster a smile. She then stood up straight and took a step forward, leaving her hiding spot.

"Marinette," said Adrien. "If you're too scared to go in alone, then we should go in together. Chloe's one of my long time friends. She won't hurt you if I'm by your side."

"Re-really?" Marinette blinked. She looked down, tucking a loose tress behind her ear. He practically just offered to be her knight in shining armor. "That's really nice of you…"

"I do try my best." He flashed her with a charming smile. He then took a step back and lifted a finger and pointed in the direction of the crosswalk, gesturing Marinette to lead the way.

Marinette smiled, her rosy pink cheeks starting to warm up her current body temperature. She took a few steps ahead of him, and soon after, Adrien followed until he was walking by her side.

The bluenette looked down, but glanced from side to side every so often, cautious of any cars that weren't paying any attention to the two of them crossing the street. She bit her bottom lip, wanting to say something to the honey blonde, but her shyness suddenly got ahold of her. She interlaced her fingers, and rolled her wrists.

"So your wrist is feeling better, huh?" Adrien said as they reached the other side of the street. "I was worried that you weren't going to see a doctor."

"I didn't," said Marinette, unlacing her fingers. She held up the injured wrist and began moving it. It stung when she rolled it a certain way, but it was much better than before. In fact, the pain mostly just felt like she slept on it weirdly. "Lucas gave me this healing ointment during rehearsals. It works like a charm." Marinette said, letting her hand fall back to her side. She then glanced up to her left at Adrien who suddenly had a frown on his face.

"Marinette can I be honest with you?" Adrien asked, sighing.

"Yeah, of course."

Adrien reached for the golden handle, and pulled the door open. He held it out for Marinette to enter the building first. Naturally, Marinette thanked him, and the two were welcomed to a blast of cooling air. Adrien quickened his pace and stopped beside a few potted plants. Marinette followed him, curious about his thoughts.

"I…" Adrien hesitated for a moment. "I'm not very fond of Lucas." He sighed. "He seems like a cool guy, but I just don't like how he treated Chloe at the rehearsals. I think it was uncalled for."

Marinette looked up at Adrien's concerned eyes. She wasn't very fond of Chloe, but she had to admit that she liked what happened. She even felt that the queen bee deserved it. Someone had to stand up to her.

She guessed that Adrien made a good point though. It was one thing to stand up to a bully, but it was another to humiliate them in front of everyone else. In that scenario, you're just as bad as the bully.

"You know," Adrien continued. "I don't think Chloe was good for the part either, but Lucas could have been nicer about it."

"Lucas is in showbiz though," said Marinette. "It's probably like that everywhere. Maybe's he's just used to doing things a certain way." She couldn't believe that she was defending the boy. She wasn't very fond of him either. He was the one who helped heal her wrist though. She had to give him some sort of credit.

"I guess," said Adrien, still sounding unsure. "I just… there's something about him that I just don't trust. You seem to be the only one who hasn't fallen for his stardom. I just wanted to know if you felt like something was off too."

Marinette tilted her head, trying to read Adrien's expression. She's never seen him so bewildered before. At least, about a person. He looked really serious too. She didn't like Lucas because of his narcissistic confidence. She didn't really think that there was more to the guy other than that.

"I'll keep an eye on him," said Marinette. Although, she wasn't sure as to what she should be looking for. Lucas was here for the play. What could he do other than possibly ruining the show?

* * *

Marinette entered the dining hall with her jaw dropped wide open. The second her and Adrien stepped into the hall, four workers dressed like butlers crowded around them, each holding a silver platter with fancy appetizers on top. Marinette looked from left to right, trying to make out the ingredients that made up each appetizer. She felt like everything was a little too fancy for her taste. One looked like a snail shell, stuffed with some kind of herby mix. The others looked like crackers, topped with vegetables and other ingredients she's never seen before. Everything smelled delicious, but Marinette simply waved off the butlers and politely thanked them for the offer.

As the butlers returned to their spots by the doors, awaiting their next guest to ambush, Marinette took in the scenery all around her. It wasn't the biggest dining room in all of Le Grand Paris, but it was certainly decorated to look like it was the most expensive one to rent.

The room was white with giant portraits of the Parisian landscape mounted on the walls. At the center was a giant chandelier with branches of small orbs of lights. Just below that was a giant round table covered in a pastel white tablecloth and a glass vase with white roses as its centerpiece. In front of each white vinyl dinner chair were a bountiful amount of porcelain plates, cutlery, and wine glasses. And on top of each dainty white dish was a napkin folded into a rose.

Marinette never thought that a single person needed so much just to have a dinner. She's seen it in movies and knew that fancy restaurants followed such a setting, but she never knew that she would be given the chance to take part in one.

"You're going to be full before the actual dinner starts."

Marinette looked to her right, now noticing that there were at least six more butlers, standing by the walls, each holding a silver platter of appetizers. Beside one of the butlers was Nathanael who was telling Kim to stop stuffing his face. Nathanael was going to play Adrien's manager. Along with Alix and Rose, those three were to be the cause of the next akumatized villain – The Dark Model. And, they were to be the victims of said villain. If anyone asked Marinette, Chloe would be the perfect part for one of the victims. She was practically the cause of every akumatized victim in Paris.

"There's always room in my stomach," said Kim through a mouthful of who knows what.

There weren't that many people taking part in the play. If Marinette remembered, there were seven of them that actually had lines. Everyone else who had a part, were told to yell and run away when Adrien's character started his rampage on the entire city. Marinette seriously didn't think that a fancy dinner was needed.

"Don't you think that this is a little much?" Adrien asked, reading her mind.

"I guess Lucas just wants to make a good impression," said Marinette. To each their own, she supposed.

"Good evening everyone!"

Marinette turned around to see Lucas entering the hall, surprisingly wearing his school clothes. Now none of them fit the style of the decorative room. Marinette thought that the famous singer would make a huge entrance, dressed in a fancy suit.

"Sorry for the fancy dinner," said Lucas while signaling his butlers to leave the premises and probably get started with preparing their dinner. "I didn't plan any of this. I just asked my assistant to get me a place to have a dinner."

Marinette watched as Lucas took a few steps closer to her. He stopped in front of her, gently grabbed onto her hand and began inspecting her wrist. "Looks better now, doesn't it?" He grinned at her, causing her to slightly blush and Adrien to quietly scoff.

The bluenette pulled her hand away from Lucas' grip and in return, Lucas simply smirked before sauntering over to the round table.

"Since you guys are all having a fancy dinner, I suppose that I will have to arrange another dinner for the rest of our class. It's only fair," he mumbled before telling everyone to come join him at the table.

After a half hour of listening to Lucas converse with everyone, trying to get to know each of his fellow actors respectably, the butlers sauntered back into the room, setting everyone's appetizer on the table.

Marinette looked down to her hot soup, using her hands to wave away the steam that was emitting from it. It looked like French onion soup, except much more fanciful. It was just soup yet the chef's were somehow able to place the mozzarella cheese and sprig of herb on top so ornately. It almost made Marinette not want to dip into it with her spoon. She looked up at everyone else who was already having a taste. Kim especially looked like he was already halfway done. It seriously made Marinette wonder as to how he was able to eat it without blowing on it first.

Suddenly, the lights switched off and the room was pitch black.

Rose was the first to scream, followed by Alix who was most likely startled by Rose's high pitched voice. Everyone then began to talk with one another in the dark, and through all that, Marinette swore that she could still hear Kim slurping on his soup.

"Relax," said Lucas, trying to talk above everyone else. "I'm sure its nothing. I'll just ask what's going on at-"

The irate sound of shattering glass rung through the hall. A crunching sound then followed, as if someone were purposely stepping all over the glass. "WHERE IS SHE?" A female voice shrieked, causing Marinette's heart to stop. It sounded awfully like Chloe.

Marinette gulped before ducking beneath the table. She needed to transform, but she didn't know how. She couldn't do it in this dark room.

"WHERE IS SHE?" Chloe shrieked once more, stomping all over the glass.

"Wh-who are you looking for?" Rose whimpered.

"MARINETTE! WHERE IS MARINETTE!?"

Marinette bit her bottom lip. That just confirmed that it was indeed Chloe. And if her suspicions were correct, she was akumatized.

Marinette began crawling along the length of the floor. She tried her best to keep quiet as she heard Chloe's footsteps pace around the room. She suddenly heard the creak of the door, followed by a momentarily shine of light from the outside.

"WHO JUST LEFT?!" Chloe yelled out, her footsteps picking up speed.

Marinette's heart began to pound through her chest. As fast as she could, she got up on her feet and ran towards the door. She almost slipped a couple of times, but she came to a stop as the doorknob slammed against her rib. Marinette groaned quietly in pain, but immediately opened the door and left the room. She then heard Chloe's bellow, followed by a question of who just left the room.

 _I have to transform…_ Marinette thought before taking a right. She remembered that there was a second door in the hall. Chloe most likely came from that entrance. If anything, it had to lead to the kitchen. Marinette sprinted to her right, noticing a small hall where she could transform into LadyBug. As she took a turn she slipped across the linoleum flooring and bumped into Adrien. Marinette almost fell to the floor, but Adrien reached out and grabbed onto her injury free wrist.

"Adrien, what are you doing out here? You were the one who escaped first?" Marinette asked in a hurry.

"Uhh… yeah… I went to ask maintenance about the lights," he sounded unsure. "What are you doing out here?"

"Uhh… I- I went to get some help too. Maybe I can find Chat Noir or LadyBug… I'm sure they aren't too far away…" she lied.

"That's a good idea!" Adrien said. "You go that way, and I'll go this way!" He pointed to the left, towards the kitchen before pointing to the right at the exit.

"Sounds great," Marinette smiled before taking her leave.

Marinette transformed into LadyBug before running straight through the kitchen, asking every worker about where the dining hall was located. No one questioned her and simply pointed in the direction of where she had to go. Soon enough, LadyBug burst through the doors to see that the dining hall was filled with lights once more.

She quickly scanned the area to see everyone, but Lucas cowering around the table. The glass that shattered onto the floor looked like it was from a few pitchers. The ice, spilled liquid, and sliced lemons gave it all away.

"About time."

LadyBug looked up to see Chat Noir already sparring with Anti-Bug. She was using her yoyo to defend herself from his baton while trying to land a punch or a kick.

"I tried my best," said LadyBug as she ran over to the group that was cowering to one side of the table. "Let's go everyone. Let's get you to safety." LadyBug began to usher everyone towards the exit. "Where's Lucas?" she asked as she walked beside Rose.

"I don't know," Rose answered with a shaky voice. "I guess he somehow left… Maybe to get help…"

 _Lucas went to get help too? When did he escape? Why didn't I see him?_

"NO!" AntiBug growled. "Where's Marinette!? She's supposed to be here!"

"I suspected that you were going to try something at this dinner, so I kept her someplace safe."

AntiBug growled before angrily swinging her yoyo at Chat Noir. Chat Noir tried his best to defend himself from her attack, but ended up getting hit on the forehead. He slipped on a few pieces of glass and fell to the ground.

"She stole something important to me and I need it back!" AntiBug yelled before sprinting towards LadyBug. LadyBug immediately shut the door behind her as soon as the last butler left. She grabbed her yoyo and began defending herself from AntiBug's attacks.

"It's just a part in a play," LadyBug grunted as AntiBug's attacks began to pick up speed. "You can play me in another play. Maybe one that's to be shown to the whole city!" She tried to convince the angry villain.

"I don't care about that! She stole my role and my favorite artist! She needs to be punished!"

"Shouldn't you be mad at Lucas then?" Chat Noir rejoined the scene by swinging his baton at AntiBug's waist.

AntiBug yelped in pain before jumping backwards, keeping her distance from the fearsome duo. She rubbed her lower waist before looking at the two with vexed eyes. She then smirked before deciding to wield her Anti-Charm.

Taken aback, LadyBug took a step backwards and did the exact same thing, except with her Lucky Charm. An object before her glowed and a red pouch with black spots appeared in her hands.

 _Marbles, again?_ She thought as she opened the pouch.

LadyBug looked up at AntiBug who was wielding the same bulky weapon from their first encounter.

"You're not going to fool me again with those silly marbles!"

"This is just purrfect," said Chat Noir, sarcastically.

"It's not like I get to choose the item," she countered.

"Well what are we going to-" Chat Noir stopped midsentence and jumped up high with the help of his baton as AntiBug began to swing her ginormous weapon at the duo.

"Just… uhm…" LadyBug did a couple flips backwards before using her yoyo to grapple onto the chandelier and bring her to the other side.

She looked around the vicinity, using her magical instincts to help her with using the item that was given to her.

"Chat Noir," she grinned, noticing a similar ladybug patterned pouch that was sitting on the table.

"What?" He grunted as he tried his best to dodge all of AntiBug's attacks. His baton was no use other than helping him maneuver around the area.

"Follow my lead," she said as she used the chandelier once more to help her swing towards Chat Noir. In the middle of doing so, she grabbed the second pouch and stuffed the ones containing marbles into one of Chat Noir's hands.

"Not so fast!" AntiBug growled before swinging at LadyBug's string that was keeping her suspended in the air.

LadyBug yelped as she swung backwards, dodging AntiBug's attack. As AntiBug began to recharge her stamina to swing once more, LadyBug tugged on the string until it was no longer hanging onto one of the nooks on the chandelier. She yelped, flailing her arms as she fell onto the ground. She didn't have enough time in the air to execute a perfect landing.

"Oww," LadyBug groaned in pain, thankful that she at least didn't land on the side where all the pieces of glass were. She looked just ahead of her where her pouch has fallen to the ground. She slid herself forward, trying to reach for the pouch, intending on opening it and releasing whatever it was in the bag as a distraction.

"Not this time." AntiBug smirked before hunching over, ready to sprint towards the fallen LadyBug.

As AntiBug began to sprint, LadyBug yelled, "NOW!"

Chat Noir immediately opened the pouch and let the marbles roll across the vicinity of the floor.

"GAHH!" AntiBug yelled out as LadyBug swung her yoyo towards the chandelier. AntiBug fell to the ground, and LadyBug tugged on the chandelier, trying to bring it closer to where AntiBug was laying.

"Cataclysm!" Chat Noir yelled out before touching the chandelier.

LadyBug and Chat Noir immediately ran to the other side of the room, trying to not get caught in the glass and metal debris that was falling to the ground.

AntiBug groaned once more as the pieces of the chandelier fell on top of her. She brought her arms above her head, trying to protect herself, but a large piece of metal fell onto one of her arms, causing her to wince and bring her arm back. As she began massaging her arm one of the glass orbs fell on top of her head, causing her to faint.

"I'm sure she won't suffer too much injuries…" LadyBug said, feeling sort of bad for what Chloe was going to experience the next day. She shrugged before walking over to the unconscious villain. She kicked around some of the fallen debris and kneeled down, grabbing onto her earrings. She then tossed them onto the ground and stomped on the pair with her right foot. Just as she expected, an akuma flew from its hiding spot and began to fly up towards the ceiling.

LadyBug nodded in determination, ready to get rid of the tainted butterfly. She tightened her grip on her yoyo before letting it fly out in front of her, intending on catching the butterfly.

"I'll be taking that." A white figure swooped past the black butterfly, trapping it in a transparent sphere of the sorts.

LadyBug's jaw dropped as her gaze met Chat Le Blanc's honey colored eyes.

"What are you doing here?" Chat Noir demanded as Chat Le Blanc's heels came into contact with the wall. The white villain pushed off the wall, did a flip and landed on the floor. With the transparent sphere in his hands, he reached to a chain on his utility belt and clipped the container in place.

"Just came here for this, Noir," said Chat Le Blanc with a devilish grin. "Thank you for making my job a thousand times easier."

"What?" Chat Noir retorted. "What are you going to do with that? Give it back!" Chat Noir charged forwards, doing a series of flips before extending his baton out in front of him.

"I'm not here to fight you," said Chat Le Blanc, dodging Chat Noir's attacks with ease.

"Then why are you here?" asked LadyBug, ready to join the fight. "Why do you want that akuma?!"

"It's none of your business," said Chat Le Blanc before flashing LadyBug with a toothy grin. "How's your wrist doing, love?"

"She's not your love!" Chat Noir yelled out in anger. He swung his baton with brute force, but Chat Le Blanc gracefully jumped up, extended his arm and placed his palm on top of Chat Noir's head. He then swooped downwards, extending one of his legs, and striking Chat Noir's just above his heel.

Chat Noir yelped in pain before falling forwards, his baton leaving his grasp and flying about the area.

"You really need to work on your moves, Noir. You just look like a silly cat," Chat Le Blanc said before looking back to LadyBug whose fist was clenched to the point where blood was ready to drip through her suit. "How's the wrist doing? Did you enjoy one of my many weapons?"

"My wrist is fine," LadyBug gritted through her teeth while bringing her arm backwards, ready to ensue with her first attack.

Chat Le Blanc grimaced. "You can at least tell me that you enjoy the rose tattoo on your wrist. It's quite lovely, isn't it? In a sense, I guess I marked you before Chat Noir has." He let out a chuckle.

"You little-" Chat Noir stood on his feet, his baton back in his hands. He extended it to its full length, ready to pounce once more.

"I told you I wasn't here to fight," said Chat Le Blanc. "Besides, do you really want to attack me?" He slipped a hand into one of the many pockets on his utility belt, pulling out what looked to be the same band he used on LadyBug the day before. "Do you want to be marked too, Noir?" He grinned.

Chat Noir jerked his head to look at LadyBug. "What tattoo is his talking about?"

"It's nothing," she replied. "It just left an imprint of a rose on my skin."

"That better be nothing harmful!" Chat Noir jerked his head to look at Chat Le Blanc again. "I won't let you hurt her!"

Chat Le Blanc shrugged. "Maybe it's just a tattoo," he said, unwavered. "Maybe it's something more. Who knows? If you let me go, then you won't have to find out."

LadyBug looked over to her partner, unsure of what to do. She could tell that his senses were being clouded by his anger. Could the tattoo be more than an imprint on her skin? They didn't know enough about Chat Le Blanc. The only thing they could tell was that he was a dangerous opponent. Maybe even more dangerous than Hawk Moth. Maybe he was in cahoots with Hawk Moth. Who knew?

LadyBug brought her index finger to her chin, wondering what she should do. Then she remembered. She remembered what Tikki wanted her to do. To spar with him. Maybe they would be able to find out more if Tikki's suspicions were confirmed.

She took a deep breath before bending her knees. She brought her yoyo backwards before letting it fly out in front of her.

"You seriously don't know when to give up, do you?" As if he knew what she was up too, Chat Le Blanc immediately grabbed ahold of his own baton and used it to defend himself from her attack.

LadyBug thrust forward, bringing her arm back before trying to land a punch the second she found an opening. From the corner of her eye, she could see Chat Noir ready to pounce back into the battle. "Stay still Chat Noir," she said.

"What? Why?" he asked, shocked.

"You're letting your anger get the best of you. You're not fighting well." She grunted as she jumped up, dodging a kick that was coming from down below.

Chat Le Blanc let out a chuckle. "She's right. You're not doing that great. But if you want, I'll be able to take the both of you."

"Don't listen to him." LadyBug did a few cartwheels backwards. She felt herself reaching her limit. Chat Le Blanc was fast and quite an expert. She only knew the moves she did because of Tikki. As Marinette, she was unable to execute these types of flips or offensive attacks. Everything was from her kwami's power.

LadyBug charged ahead then thrust her fist forward, but once again Chat Le Blanc dodged it with complete ease. It was like he was used to this kind of sparring. Perhaps his true self was a master in tae kwon do or some other kind of martial art. It seemed that way.

LadyBug yelped, noticing a fist heading straight towards her face.

"PURRINCESS!" Chat Noir yelled out, rushing over to her.

"Just kidding," said Chat Le Blanc as his fist was a mere centimeter away from her face. "Lesson number one: Only focus on the battle in front of you." He quickly moved his baton to his left, the tip almost burying into Chat Noir's chest. Chat Noir was quick to stop, but fell backwards, thinking that he was somehow going to get impaled by Chat Le Blanc's baton.

"Here you go, love," Chat Le Blanc said as he reached into another pocket. He pulled out a white rose and tossed it in LadyBug's direction. The flower landed by LadyBug's feet and she bent down to grab onto it. She then looked up and watched Chat Le Blanc pounce about the room until he stopped by one of the exits. "You know," he said. "Your pigtails are quite iconic." He winked before opening the door and leaving the room in a hurry.

"You're seriously going to accept that rose?" Chat Noir said, enraged.

"I still think there's some kind of clue. Maybe I need to collect more than one."

"Whatever you think, purrincess," he said with attitude.

LadyBug could tell that he was annoyed with what she told him to do earlier. But, he was seriously letting his rage do all the fighting. He looked like a kitten that was still learning to walk.

She rolled her eyes as she walked over to Chloe who was no longer dressed as AntiBug. It was strange though. She wasn't waking up. Hopefully the orb that landed on her head didn't cause a serious injury. LadyBug moved the debris to the side and asked Chat Noir for his assistance. Chat Noir scoffed but helped her pick Chloe up from the ground. They then exited the dining hall to see a worried mayor standing in front of them.

"You should get her checked," said LadyBug. "She might have a concussion."

"R-Right away!" The mayor immediately turned to the right where a team of health workers was standing.

"Will all due respect milady," said Chat Noir. "I don't want you pushing me away like that."

"Then don't let your feelings get in the way," LadyBug said as her earrings began to beep. "I'm sorry kitty, but we don't know what we're dealing with. We need to think straight. I'll see you later." She ran towards the exit then turned back to look at her partner. "Bug out!"

* * *

Marinette paced around her room, staring at the two white roses that she laid on her desk. Maybe they were just flowers, but she still found it weird. She didn't find any clue on the other flower, but it was still the only lead she had.

After the fiasco, she came back as Marinette and joined the others. Adrien looked much more bummed than usual, but everyone looked a little terrified. Perhaps he encountered Chat Le Blanc when looking for the maintenance crew. Lucas then appeared out of nowhere and apologized for what happened. He then promised everyone a dinner another time, a dinner that wouldn't be so fancy.

"Marinette," said Tikki after finishing her chocolate chip cookie. "I don't know how to say this."

"What is it Tikki?" Marinette asked. She looked over to her kwami that was sitting atop of her vanity. She didn't know it, but during the battle, Tikki didn't have much power to keep going. She trudged through it and used more power than she ever had to keep Marinette as LadyBug. She was unable to talk to Marinette right after the battle, so Marinette's mind was filled with curiosity for hours.

Marinette walked over to her vanity, sat on her chair and intently stared at her kwami who just finished devouring the rest of her cookie.

"I don't really understand this Marinette, but…"

"But what...?"

"I think Chat Le Blanc is a miraculous holder. I sensed a power… a different power. I felt it. It's similar to Chat Noir's but also very different."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not sure Marinette. Over the years, there were theories and speculations over another set of miraculous'. I don't know if they are real, but with Chat Le Blanc around, I'm open to the idea. It's the only thing that makes sense."

"Where can I hear more about this theory?" Marinette slammed her palms against her vanity, startling the poor little kwami. She then pulled her hands away, and stared at her kwami with apologetic eyes. Her kwami understood though. Chat Le Blanc was a villain that they never faced before. It was different than the typical akumatized villain. It was different than Hawk Moth who never stepped out of his hiding place.

"I think we need to pay a visit to Master Fu."

* * *

 **And we are here at the end, again.**

 **Leave a follow, like, and a review my sillies! :)**

 **I'd like to know what you think! Your speculations are quite fun to read.**


	6. Split Kwami's

**NOTE:** hey guys! :) Been a month... yeah... I will try updating this one more often. haha

Onto a couple reviews!

 _ **Fu Is Bae:**_ _the only problem i had is that ladybug's yo-yo broke. after all it is indestructible...(they said that in the show)great work tho.._

 **Yeah, I'm aware of that. I did want it to break just as something different, but I have to admit I put it in there randomly, and it just didn't work. So, I'll be putting that in at some other point in the story and have a reason behind it. :) I did change it in the last chapter so it didn't break. Thanks!**

 _ **sanasings:** This is a great story! Can't wait for the next chapter. I was curious about one thing however. When the first person escaped the room Marinette mentioned seeing a light (my guess is the light of a transformation), but then when she left she bumped into Adrien not Chat Noir. Did that light belong to Chat Le Blanc?_

 **I probably should have used better words to describe it. I had to go back and read that part since it's been awhile, but it was actually just the light shining from outside since the room was dark. No transformation there.**

 _ **Thanks to everyone else who left a review - Pikachu, Tiger Priestess, Henessy04, Roger0326, librosmysticos, Scarlet gaurd101, Liz The Sweet Writer, KIKI, fangirl-mode-on, Brokenwings35, ItsImportant -SH, Lady Josephine, The Punch Lord.**_

 **I hope you enjoy the chapter! :)**

* * *

 **Chapter Six**

Marinette fumbled with the zipper of her purse, eagerly waiting for Master Fu's call. She sat there in the waiting room to his office, swinging her legs, occasionally bumping them against the leg of the wooden chair. She took a deep breath before eying the different ornate trinkets that lined the few shelves in the room. Everything looked as if it was picked up from some sort of antique shop. She wanted to hold each one and inspect it, but she wouldn't dare.

She looked down to her fingers, still fumbling with the zipper on her purse. She's met Master Fu a few times. The first time was when he healed Tikki. The second was where she learned that he was the one who chose her as the wielder of the ladybug miraculous. The third time didn't really count to her. It was the day she found those ladybug earrings. She apparently saved him from a passing car on her way to school. She couldn't remember that time until it was mentioned during the second meeting. So, she supposed that was really the first time she met him. She felt sort of dumb after she came to him regarding Tikki's illness. He knew about Tikki all along, and she was trying so hard to convince him that Tikki was a rare, but regular animal. She could only imagine the chuckle he got out of that. She was confused as to why he or Tikki didn't inform her of who he really was, but she supposed that it just wasn't the right time. After all, she was dealing with a lot that day.

"He may see you now," said the receptionist.

Marinette looked up before glancing over at the lady who was busily staring at the computer screen in front of her. Marinette opened her mouth, about to thank the lady, but felt that she would be distracting her instead. She then stood from her chair and walked over to the door with the leafy patterns on it. At first, she hesitated to enter the room, but quickly turned the knob to let herself in.

"Ahh, Marinette," Master Fu greeted in his usual calm tone.

"Master Fu," said Marinette as she entered the room, closing the door behind her. She walked over to the center of the room, stopping just behind the wooden table where Master Fu was sitting.

"How are you today?" he asked as Tikki left the confined space of Marinette's purse. "How are you my dear Tikki?"

"Master Fu," said Tikki, getting right to it. "We have urgent news."

"Urgent news?" he asked as Marinette knelt down, sitting on the cushion below her. He looked over to the bluenette as Tikki zoomed downwards, hovering just about the wooden table. She looked straight ahead at the curious man before raising her head to look at her current holder.

Marinette sighed before scrunching up her hands on her lap. "It's about Chat Le Blanc," she said. "Tikki said that something about him is not right. That he isn't akumatized, but actually a miraculous holder."

"Ahh yes, Wayzz and I have sensed it too," he said while momentarily closing his eyes.

"What do you mean you sensed it too?" Marinette raised a brow at his words. She knew that Master Fu has been a miraculous wielder for an incredibly long time. She knew that his powers were much stronger than her own, but she wasn't exactly sure of how much he knew. She wished she were able to see him during his prime years. Maybe then she would have a better understanding of who he was and what he dealt with.

"Wayzz has been able to sense a few things," he said as his turtle kwami hovered away from its own hiding spot. It floated towards the table, stopping just beside Tikki.

This was the second time that Marinette has seen the turtle kwami. It still amazed her. She never thought that she would be able to see another kwami up close. Seeing Chat Noir's was out of the question. That would involve finding out his true identity, and Marinette didn't want that.

"It's different, isn't it Tikki?" said Wayzz, turning to look at its long time companion.

Tikki nodded before glancing at Marinette. "It's similar to Char Noir's."

Marinette agreed. When she was LadyBug, she was able to sense Chat Le Blanc's magic. It was very much similar to Chat Noir's. She didn't really notice until Tikki told her to focus on it.

"Hmmm…" Master Fu looked down, raising his right hand to stroke his beard. He looked deep in thought, almost as if he was pondering whether or not to tell Marinette of what he knew.

"Tikki tells me that there could be another set of miraculous'," said Marinette, wondering if that was what crossed his mind.

"Yes," he replied after some time, still stroking his beard.

Marinette stared at him with curious eyes. She wanted to know more, but she didn't want to appear like a dog that was eager for a treat. If it were really important, he would just tell her. "Do you think you can tell me about these other miraculous'?" she was almost too hesitant to ask. She was aware of the other kinds of miraculous', but she's never came across them. Now there was a chance of more than there really was, and it was overwhelming her.

He pursed his lips together before bringing his hand down to his lap. He looked up, meeting Marinette's eyes. "There's a story that's been passed on for centuries. A story that is only known to those who are aware of the miraculous'." He sighed before closing his eyes. He placed his hands on the table, one on top of the other. "The creation of these magical creatures is still unknown to us. And if you ask the kwami's, they don't quite remember. However, when piecing the vague memories together, you are given some kind of story."

"Some kind of story?" asked Marinette, slightly leaning in closer.

"Yes, and over the years, a term was constantly brought up. A term that could be useless or significant to finding out the past of these creatures."

"And this term is…?"

"Split kwami's."

"Split. Kwami's?" She was getting more confused by the second.

"It is said that when the kwami's were first created, the first humans to wield their powers were unable to do so due to the immense amount of magic. Somehow, the original set of kwami's was split in half, creating two of each version. Each version carries a set of powers, that when put together, create a full kwami."

Marinette furrowed her brow as she looked down to the two hovering kwami's in front of her. "So, there should be another Tikki? And, another Wayzz? And right now, they are only half themselves?" she asked for clarification.

"In a sense, yes," he answered. "Half of the set was sent out to help us humans, while the other half were put into hiding. It is said that they are still dormant, and their whereabouts are still unknown. That is, if this theory is true."

Marinette pursed her lips, trying to process the information that was just given to her. "Do you think this theory is true?"

Master Fu turned his head, looking at a few photos that were tacked onto the wall. Marinette followed his gaze, her eyes falling onto a few photos that looked to be from some place other than Paris. The photos were all old, with a lack of color and rough edges. As she squinted her eyes, she could make out a few individuals standing in one of the pictures. She hadn't the slightest idea as to who they were, but if she guessed, they were probably people that Master Fu knew.

"A long time ago," he said as he lifted the cane that he placed on the ground beside him. He then pressed his palm against the table as he used the cane to aide him with standing up. "When I was still a student, I was on a school trip to a Buddhist temple. Wayzz has been my kwami for a few years at that time, and during my stay there, he sensed some kind of magic. A magic that was familiar, yet unfamiliar at the same time." Master Fu walked over to the few photos, and placed a finger on the photo that Marinette was staring at. "When we entered an area of worship, Wayzz noticed a book. A book that looked very similar to the current miraculous book that you keep." He slid his finger off the photo before walking over to the chest that had the same insignia as the one on the book. He placed his fingers on it and slid them across the smooth surface. "It had the same symbol, but the cover was black. I came back to look at it when my class was given time to roam freely. By then, it was gone, and when I asked the monks about the book, they didn't know what I was talking about. I assumed it was all in my head. Perhaps it was a vision. And when I came across the book you hold now, I naturally assumed it was the same book." He took his hands off the chest before turning around to look at Marinette. He then placed his hand on top of the one that was resting on top of the cane. "But, perhaps, there's another book. A different one that explains Chat Le Blanc."

Marinette tightened her fists before straightening out her fingers. "Where do I find this book?"

"I'm not sure," he said. "It could be anywhere, that is, if what is being said is true."

Marinette bit her bottom lip. "It's the only lead we have on Chat Le Blanc. Chloe was just akumatized, and Chat Le Blanc stole the butterfly. What if he has some kind of power to do something with it? What if he's secretly working with Hawk Moth?"

Master Fu raised his hand, stroking his beard once more. "Perhaps there's a hint in the current book you hold. If not, there's always a library." He smiled, trying to ease the situation that was tensing Marinette.

Marinette took a deep breath before rolling her shoulders. "I guess that's all I can do for now," she said. "Thanks for the help." She stood up before bowing down in front of the old man. "I'll see what I can find."

"Good luck," he said before turning around, staring down at the chest again.

The bluenette looked down at her kwami, giving her a look that meant it was time to do research. Her kwami simply nodded, thanking Master Fu before returning to her hiding spot as Marinette exited the building.

"I've looked through that book a hundred times though," Marinette said quietly as she walked down a plight of stairs.

"I'm sure there's something there that you never noticed before, Marinette," Tikki said quietly while peeking through a crack in the zipper. "We'll just look again. It's not like you were actually looking for something hidden before."

"I guess, but I read every word on every single page. I'm pretty sure I can recite a few paragraphs." The bluenette smiled at a few strangers who were looking at her like she was crazy.

"Why don't you ask Chat Noir for help? Maybe he can find something."

"I don't know," said Marinette, disappearing behind a pillar. She could not take the amount of stares that were coming her way. "Ever since Chat Le Blanc's been roaming around, Char Noir's been on edge. He's not thinking straight, and his fighting isn't as good as it usually is." Marinette brought her purse close up to her face to look at her kwami.

"Chat Le Blanc is a tough opponent though."

"Yeah." Marinette sighed. "But I don't want Chat Noir worrying about more than the guy whose stealing his spotlight. Besides, we don't even know if this theory is real. If something does come up, I'll tell Chat Noir everything."

"I don't think that's a good idea, Marinette." Tikki grimaced as Marinette looked up, making sure that no one was coming her way.

"It will be fine," said Marinette. She then let her purse fall back down to her waist before grabbing onto her cell phone to check the time. As she pressed the button on the side, the screen flared up, showing a couple missed calls and text messages from Alya.

Marinette slid her thumb across the screen to check the messages.

 _Hey girl, I got a surprise for you! I'll be at your house at 4PM!_

Marinette glanced up to the top of the screen, noticing that it was already 4:15PM. She frowned, knowing that she was probably going to get in a lot of trouble for not noticing that text message earlier than she should. She pressed the button on the side, allowing the screen to turn black before walking away from the pillar, slowly sprinting as the crosswalk sign turned green.

"I guess my research will have to start later," she mumbled to herself, gripping onto the strap of her purse.

* * *

"Hey girl!" Alya greeted. "Where have you been?"

Marinette blew a loose tress of hair that was clinging onto her forehead as she eyed all the people in her living room. Standing just above the coffee table were her parents, holding onto a tray of croissants as the actors of the play munched on a few other baked goods that her parents gave to them.

"I was looking for costume supplies…" she lied before noticing Adrien sitting on the edge of the couch by Nino. He was busy munching on a danish. "I didn't know that we were having a meeting," she mumbled, mentally freaking out. She just ran all the way here, and felt like a sweaty mess. She so wanted to straighten out her hair, but everyone was staring at her. She shifted her gaze to the left, noticing Lucas sitting on a stool, sipping on a cup of water. She didn't care much for Lucas, but he was a superstar. She couldn't let someone as famous as him see her as a sweaty mess. She couldn't even believe that he was in her home. After that dinner they had the day before, she didn't think that he would set place in a regular, middle class home.

"We thought so," said Alya before standing up from her seat. She then grabbed the black shopping bag that was sitting on the table before walking over to the bluenette.

"Relax, girl," Alya whispered into her ear. "You still look great." She winked before handing the bag to the flustered the bluenette.

"What is this?" Marinette asked as her father set the tray of goods on the table. She was a bit surprised to see that Alya wasn't disappointed in her tardiness.

"I think you'll like it," her mom said with a wide smile.

Marinette looked over to her mom, glaring at her. She loved her parents to death, but if they stayed in the room for much longer, she knew they were bound to tell her classmates an embarrassing story from her past.

"Tom and I will get more snacks," said Sabine before tapping on her husband's shoulder.

"More snacks?" said Kim with starry eyes. "Marinette, I'm coming here everyday."

"Watch it, Kim," said Nathanael. "You'll gain more fat than muscle if you keep eating like that."

Marinette giggled along with her classmates as she walked over to join them. She set the bag back down on the coffee table before looking at Alya who was urging her to open it. Marinette sighed quietly before reaching into the bag, feeling some sort of fabric between her fingertips. She grabbed onto the garb, pulling it out, noticing the bright color. It didn't take long for her, and everyone else to realize that it was LadyBug's costume.

"I made it," said Alya. "With the help of your mom."

"Wow…" Marinette said, stunned. She began to examine the stitching, feeling as if it was an exact replica of the actual thing. Of course, it wasn't going to be the same though. After all, the real one felt magical.

"That looks pretty good," said Adrien after swallowing the rest of his treat.

"I even made the mask for you." Alya reached into the bag, pulling out the last piece of the costume. "The earrings and yoyo are being painted by Mylene, so you'll see it on Monday."

"I don't know what to say," said Marinette. "I thought I was in charge of making all the costumes."

"Girl, after yesterday, I think you deserve some help. I heard Chloe was after you. It was a good thing the real LadyBug got to you before she did."

Marinette chuckled quietly. "Uhh… yeah. It was a good thing she did." She smiled awkwardly before slightly frowning. "How is Chloe anyways?" she asked. "Does anyone know? I heard she bumped her head."

Rose leaned forward on the couch to look at the bluenette. "I heard from Sabrina that she went to the doctor's. Nothing seemed too bad. She just needed to put some ice on her bump. Other than that, Sabrina said that she's been feeling really tired. But maybe that's just the after affects of her being akumatized again."

"Right…" Marinette mumbled. She surely hoped that Chloe's exhaustion was nothing more than what just happened. Her butterfly was taken away. She should be all right. Ivan was all right until it came back. But that was what Marinette was worrying about. The butterfly coming back. Especially now that it was being held in the care of Chat Le Blanc.

"You need to try it on," said Alya. "I never sew. I need to know that I did a good job."

"Now...?" Marinette questioned. "Can't it wait until rehearsals?"

"Girl, I'm too impatient to wait another few days. And I'm pretty sure everyone else is eager to see you in the suit!"

Marinette looked straight ahead at everyone who was eagerly staring at her.

"I- uhh…"

"If you're done sewing mine, I'll try mine on with you," said Adrien, causing the bluenette to slightly blush.

"I-uhh… That's-"

"You can try yours on after her," said Alya as she placed her hands on Marinette's shoulders. She began pushing the bluenette to the washroom. "I want to see Marinette in hers."

Marinette gulped. When Alya wanted something, she always found some way to get it.

The bluenette stumbled into the washroom as Alya closed the door behind her. "Don't take too long!" she said excitedly.

The bluenette groaned as she looked at herself in the mirror. "Do you think they will assume I'm LadyBug after I put this on?" she asked as Tikki left the purse.

"Just be your usual clumsy self, and no one will notice." The kwami giggled.

Marinette glared at her kwami while puffing out her cheeks. Her skills came from Tikki's powers. Not hers. If it did, then her marks in gym would be stellar.

After a few minutes, Marinette bashfully left the washroom, wearing her LadyBug costume. She rolled her shoulders in and clasped her hands together in front of her as she slowly walked back to the living room.

"How do I look…?" she asked quietly, unable to meet anyone's eyes.

"Girl, you look exactly like Ladybug. I never noticed before, but you already have her hairstyle," said Alya walking over to her.

"Yeah!" Rose agreed, standing up from her seat with Juleka to further inspect the suit. "You did a really good job Alya." Rose began to poke the fabric as if it was an actual bug.

"I couldn't have done it without Marinette's mom," said Alya while turning around to inspect her work. "You know, if you can move like LadyBug, then I'll be convinced that you're actually her."

Marinette laughed uncomfortably. "Like that would happen, right?"

"You never know."

Marinette gulped. The last thing she wanted was for Alya to come out with an article exposing her as the real LadyBug.

"Is my costume done?" asked Kim, standing up from the couch. "Seeing you in your suit makes me want to try mine on. I bet I would look like an excellent Hawk Moth."

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure yours is done," said Marinette. "I actually finished all of them this morning. They're in the room right there," she pointed to a door across from the washroom. "Everything was getting mixed up with my personal projects in my room, so I've been doing everything in there."

"Leave it to Marinette to sew that fast," Alya said. "If only she could make it to school as fast as she completes a dress."

"Awesome!" said Kim, throwing a fist into the air. "Can I check it out?"

"You might as well," said Marinette. "After all, you wouldn't stop moving when I was doing your measurements. It wouldn't surprise me if it doesn't fit."

"Sweet. Let's go check it out."

Marinette smiled as the majority of them walked passed her to check out their own costumes. She then looked straight ahead at Adrien who was standing there, motionless with a stunned look on his face.

"Uhm…" Marinette walked over to the honey blonde. "Earth to Adrien," she said, waving a hand in front of his face. "Are you okay?"

Adrien blinked before pursing his lips together. "Yeah." He gulped. "I'm fine… I'm great, actually."

"So what do you think? Do I look like a good LadyBug?" she asked, her heartbeat quickening.

"Yeah," he said quietly. "You look almost, exactly, like her…" He trailed off before shaking his head. "Al-Alya did really good…"

"You really do look like the real thing," said Lucas, walking over to the pair. A smirk crept across his face as he shifted his gaze to look at Adrien. "You left Adrien stunned. The second he saw you, his jaw dropped."

Marinette bit her bottom lip as Adrien looked away. "It just surprised me how similar she looked to the real thing," he mumbled.

"It surprised me as well," he said. "It must be the pigtails."

"Yeah…" Marinette chuckled before suggesting that they try on their costumes.

"That's a great idea!" said Adrien, blushing as red as a tomato. "I hope you made me look cool!" He scurried away from the pair to join the others.

"So are you okay?" asked Lucas, meeting her bluebell colored eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, first you had an injured wrist, and then you became the target of a villain. I was just wondering if you were okay."

"I wouldn't be a target if you didn't incite Chloe." Marinette crossed her arms.

Lucas scoffed. "I'm sorry," he said. "I was just saying what I felt was right. I'm sorry it was too harsh for your liking. That's how the business is."

"But we're not apart of the business."

"How about you let me make it up to you then?" he asked. "I'll show you that I'm not as bad as you think. And it will do us some good. We're partners in the play. We need to get to know one another. How about we hangout and go to dinner or something?"

Marinette opened her mouth, but wasn't sure of what to say. He was really persistent. First with the dinner, and now with a date? She should have just kept her mouth shut and nodded her head.

"That would be a good idea," said Nino, walking over to the pair. "It might actually do you some good. Ladybug and Chat Noir are a fighting duo. It wouldn't look good if you guys weren't in sync."

"But I-"

"Great," said Lucas. "I'll pick you up tomorrow around lunch."

Marinette looked to her right, glaring at the director beside her. He was Adrien's best friend. Why couldn't he suggest something like that to Adrien instead?

* * *

 **NOTE:** **and here we are at the end, again. At this point, it's not very canon anymore. It's just going to be my imagination. Only season one is out, and there's not a lot of info about anything yet, so yeah... haha. Plus, I'm not very good at remembering details about shows/books, so if something is really off, just let me know. :) Thanks. P.S: I stated earlier that Volpina wasn't in this. LMAO That was a total lie, I apparently mentioned her when I went back to read the chapters.**

 **As usual, leave a like, follow, and/or a review!**

 **I'd love to know what you guys think!**


	7. Gabriel

**NOTE:** Hey guys! Once again, it's been awhile, but here's the next chapter. :)

Onto some ... well... one review. :D

 _ **Chococat:**_ _[lengthy review, and would have liked to PM instead, but couldn't since they were a guest]_

 **But, as a reply, I would like to say that criticism is always welcome. :) Since then, I haven't really planned anything other than things that I knew that I wanted to happen. While planning, I did keep your thoughts in mind, but as for now, I still think it's too early in the story to notice some development with Lucas/Chat Le Blanc. I'd say he should be a mystery right now, and probably will be for awhile.**

 _ **Thanks to everyone else who left a review since last time - Liz The Sweet Writer, Guest, Q-A Authoress, corvusam, Guest, I'm A Writing Dreamer, Guest, izzy, CorinneF, Henessy04, gleamqueen, Tiger Priestess, sanasings, Brokenwings35, Web2theweb1, Miraculous Friendship, TheMadTeaPatty.**_

 **Enjoy the chap!**

* * *

 **Chapter Seven**

Marinette reached for the mug of warm coffee placed at the corner of her desk. Her eyes were heavily fixated on the pages in front of her as she meticulously examined each picture and body of text. She glided her fingers along the top of the thousand-year-old page, trying to find some kind of risen part on the sheet that would signify some kind of hidden message. She sighed, feeling nothing but the material of the gritty old piece of parchment.

The frustrated bluenette sighed as she brought the rim of the mug to her lips, ready to take another swig. As she tilted the mug, she found that she already drank the entire cup. She groaned and set the empty mug to the side.

She's been up for hours, her eyes strained and heavy from inspecting the book. She could have separated her examination time into a few increments each day, but she was so eager to find any clues leading to the whereabouts of another unknown miraculous book. If she got her hands on that book, Chat Le Blanc would no longer be that much of a mystery.

She grabbed onto the notebook containing her notes and speculations on the mysterious cat. She made a list of things she's seen, but all of it was too overwhelming for her. He was an excellent fighter, or better yet, his kwami was. He seemed to have a thing for roses, and Marinette was sure that she was bound to receive more of those. He also had a strangely fitted utility belt with an unknown amount of compartments. From her first encounter, it seemed to be fitted with gadgets, but how many exactly? She's seen two. That strange wristband that damaged her wrist and that orb that somehow turned into ropes and held Chat Noir against the beams of the Eiffel Tower. One thing that she wondered about that utility belt was if it was his hidden power. She had her Lucky Charm while Chat Noir had his Cataclysm. A utility belt with gadgets seemed kind of odd to her. It didn't seem like a power. It just seemed like something he made and buckled on after transforming.

The very last thing that tangled Marinette's thoughts on the aloof cat was his need to take the akuma that was controlling Chloe. At one point, she thought that Chat Le Blanc could have been a villain working with Hawk Moth, but if he took one of Hawk Moth's butterflies, then maybe that meant he was much of a threat to Hawk Moth as he was to her and Chat Noir. Marinette was going to have to wait and see if Hawk Moth was willing to make another move. He just akumatized Chloe for the second time, and he hasn't done anything since his precious akuma has been stolen. It relieved Marinette, but also made her incredibly anxious. He was obviously aware of Chat Le Blanc and might be setting new plans in motion.

"Marinette!" The muffled voice of Sabine sounded through the floorboards. "You have a guest!"

"A guest?" Marinette whispered before turning her head to look at the time on her digital clock. "Who would be here at lunch-" She stopped midsentence upon realizing that she had to hangout with Lucas today. "I completely forgot about that." She groaned as she turned around in her chair. She then stood up and walked over to her vanity.

She placed her palms on the table, leaned forward and began to inspect her face.

"Don't worry, Marinette," said Tikki, trying to use her tiny hands to turn a page over in the book. "I can continue inspecting the book while you're gone."

Marinette groaned once more as she slowly turned her head from left to right. Her face developed two pimples during the course of her research. Her eye bags were making her look like a human panda, and her hair was making her look like she was constantly tossing and turning around in her sleep. She scrunched up a bit of her hair between her palms, as she heard her mom telling Lucas that she was still in her room.

Marinette tugged on her hair ties until they were no longer bound to her hair. She placed them on the vanity in front of her before grabbing onto her hairbrush. She glided the bristles through her hair, trying to smooth out each strand. She fumbled upon reaching for the hair ties and recreating her do. She puffed out her cheeks and slowly let the air escape from her mouth as she examined her style. It wasn't the best work, but it had to do. She reached into her drawer and pulled out a stick of concealer and setting powder. She messily applied the products under her eyes before throwing the items back in and slamming the drawer shut.

Marinette then turned around, her eyes immediately coming into contact with the door that was being lifted open. She then looked up to Tikki who was already taking cover behind a pile of Marinette's books.

"Marinette," said her mom, her head peeking in. "Do you still need time to get ready? I can tell your friend Lucas to wait."

"I-I'm fine mom," Marinette stuttered, her heart pounding due to the lack of time she had to put herself together.

"Okay." Her mother then turned away to look down the stairs. "She's ready. She'll be down."

Marinette sighed. Sometimes she wished that her mother would just usher her friends into the bakery, give them a scone, and tell them to wait ten minutes. It never worked that way though. Her mother had a need to converse with her guests and get to know them. If Marinette were taking too long to come out, her mother would barge in and make sure that everything was okay. After that, she would tell Marinette's friends exactly what she was doing. If she were busy plucking her eyebrows, her friends would know. Luckily, it was Alya most of the time, and not someone like… well… Adrien.

Marinette grabbed onto her purse and followed her mom down the stairs. As she descended, she noticed Lucas standing there, eating a macaron while complimenting the bakery.

"Thank you so much!" Her father huskily laughed.

"This bakery should cater to the Bourgeois hotel," said Lucas after swallowing.

Her father continued to laugh as she reached the bottom of the staircase. She could tell that he was enjoying Lucas' compliments a little too much.

"Marinette," said Lucas upon noticing her. He stuffed the rest of the macaron into his mouth. "Ready to go?" he asked after finishing his treat.

"Uhm… yeah. I guess." Marinette shrugged her shoulders. She wasn't sure as to what was planned. She just knew that she was dragged into all of this because of Nino. That darn Nino.

"Have fun you two!" Her mother called out in her usual cheery voice.

Marinette sighed as she followed Lucas out of the bakery. She then froze as she watched the chauffeur hold the car door open for Lucas.

"Here you are Master La Fontaine."

"Thanks Noah, but that isn't necessary." Lucas grabbed onto the car handle, signaling his chauffeur to get back into the driver's seat.

Lucas then turned his head, his eyes meeting Marinette's. "After you, milady," he said with a grin on his face.

For once, Marinette wished that that word escaped from Chat Noir's lips instead of his.

"Don't call me that," said Marinette as she stepped into the car. She scooted over to the other window, the fresh scent of leather overcoming her senses. She then looked to her left, watching the strangers pass by, some of them beguiled by Lucas' presence. Some were taking pictures, while others stared at her with envy.

Lucas waved at his fans before stepping into the car, sitting next to the other window. He then slammed the door shut and commanded his chauffeur, Noah to take them to their destination.

"Wait, where are we going?" Marinette asked.

"It's a surprise," he said with a sly grin.

* * *

Marinette stepped out of the vehicle, her eyes immediately blinded by the bright rays of the sun. She held one of her arms above her head to shield her gaze from the rays before glancing straight ahead.

In front of her was a walkway with towering pillars leading up to a large domed building. She took a few steps forward, squinting her eyes as she stared at the large metallic lettering that was attached above the doors.

 _Gabriel._

"Gabriel?" Marinette whispered too soon. As the name escaped from her lips, she immediately realized where they were. They were steps away from Gabriel Agreste's fashion empire, a place that Marinette was always dying to see.

Other than being absolutely smitten with Adrien, she absolutely adored his father's imprint in the fashion scene. He was a huge inspiration and she admired his fashion sense. She's always wanted to see what it was like to be a person working in his office, but he was a strict man. No one was allowed in there. Marinette wasn't even sure of how many people set foot in that building.

"Shall we?" he asked, a look of overbearing confidence plastered on his face.

"Wh-what?" Marinette asked, befuddled. "Shall we what?"

Lucas chuckled as Noah drove away. "Go inside."

"In… in there?"

"Yeah. I'm a model in his next fashion show. I need to try on a few outfits," he said. "And, I know you're an aspiring fashion designer. I think you can learn a thing or two from the professionals."

Marinette's heart began to race as she reached into her purse, hoping to feel for her sketchpad and pencil. She bit her bottom lip, realizing that her supplies weren't in there. She was so preoccupied with the miraculous book that she didn't even bother to check her purse for her essentials.

"Don't worry," he said, walking ahead of her. "I've been here before. There's a ton of sketchpads and pencils everywhere. I'm sure you can take one for your own."

Marinette slightly blushed. She wasn't expecting him to know what was going on in her mind. He's only been here for a short period of time, yet Marinette felt like he already knew her somehow. She sort of wanted to question him, but maybe he was just good at reading people.

Marinette trailed along behind Lucas until they entered the building. As the heavy glass door closed behind her, a lemony scent wafted straight to her nose. She was taken a back by how strong it was and almost sneezed from her senses going haywire. It wasn't even the real citrusy smell. It was the kind that was synthesized for cleaning products. She should have expected it though. She always knew that Mr. Agreste was a neat freak.

The bluenette stepped onto the long black rug and began to eye the place in wonder. There were leather sofas neatly placed around the room with a reception desk at the very back center. On either side of the desks were two long halls, and Marinette was eager to see what lay beyond those doors. She knew that was where all the magic happened.

"Lucas La Fontaine."

Marinette looked at the receptionist, noticing that it was Mr. Agreste's assistant, Nathalie. She was busily typing up a few things on the computer in front of her while periodically glancing at the pop star that was walking her way.

"You're here for a fitting, am I correct?" asked Nathalie, turning her attention away from the computer as Lucas reached the counter. She then glanced behind him, and eyed the bluenette. "And you brought a guest with you? That is not allowed."

"We're in a play together," he said. "I'm sure you heard of it. We need to spend our time together to perfect our chemistry on stage."

"I'd have to check with Mr. Agreste, but I believe he will not allow it." She reached for the phone on the desk.

"That won't be necessary," said Lucas, placing a hand on Nathalie's. "She'll be coming with me. If Mr. Agreste makes a fuss, then I'll talk to him."

Nathalie simply nodded her head and allowed Lucas and Marinette access into the hall on the right.

Marinette gulped, feeling bad for entering the premises without Nathalie's full permission. If she came across Mr. Agreste later, he might throw her out. She always wanted to scope out the place, but she didn't want to do it on Lucas' terms.

She looked back at Nathalie who resumed typing some information into the computer.

"Don't worry," said Lucas. "It's not a big deal. They are very keen on making their special guests happy."

For a second, Marinette almost forgot that Lucas was a famous singer.

The two continued down the hall, passing a few doors before entering an elevator. They then ascended a few floors, and entered the first door on their right.

Marinette eyed the quaint room, realizing that it was a dressing room. There was a loveseat with a coffee table in front of it, a vanity, and a clothing rack.

"What are we doing in here? I thought that you had to try on a few things," she asked, walking over to a table that contained a variety of snacks and refreshments.

"This floor is just a bunch of dressing rooms. You wait in your own room until you're called out." He grabbed a water bottle from the table after halfheartedly chewing on a pretzel.

Marinette raised a brow as she sat on the love seat with her back straight. She placed her hands on her lap, still feeling as if she wasn't supposed to be here. She never thought that this building contained a bunch of dressing rooms for guests. She supposed it should have. There were a few models that were in every fashion show.

"Why are you so nervous?" he asked. "Just relax." He reached over the vanity and grabbed onto what appeared to be a sketchpad and some pencils. He then tossed it in Marinette's direction, causing the bluenette to awkwardly reach out for the supplies.

"Why don't you go explore?" he suggested. "Maybe it will calm you down."

"Calm me down?" she questioned. "You're going against Mr. Agreste's wishes of me being here, and now you're telling me to wander the place?"

"Just pretend you're going to the washroom. It's right around the corner on your left. You can't miss it."

"You're not going to wander with me?"

"Gonna miss me that much, huh?" he teased, then stopped when he noticed Marinette's scowl. "I have to wait here in case someone comes for me." He placed his water bottle on the table then walked over to Marinette and placed his hands on her shoulders. "What's the worse that can happen?" He winked before pushing the bluenette out of the room.

Marinette blinked, her mind taking a second to process what just happened. She then gripped tightly onto the sketchpad and the pencil, feeling angry that he just kicked her out of the dressing room. They were supposed to be getting to know one another for the play, and here he was, acting like a complete jerk. For a second, she thought it was nice of him to bring her here. She thought, maybe, he planned it in advance. Nope. He didn't. He most likely just had a schedule to follow, and decided to drag her along.

Marinette sighed, letting her frustrations die down. She then took a couple steps forward, and began to mutter to herself.

"Go explore?" she whispered. "Explore what? This is a floor with just dressing rooms." She reached the corner and looked to her left, noticing a single door that was a few meters down the hall. She then looked to her right, noticing a bunch more doors in that direction. She tilted her head, wondering why one door was down this hall. There wasn't even the universal figures' depicting whether or not the washroom was for males or females.

She scowled, thinking maybe it was one of those weird bathrooms that made you go into a waiting room before actually choosing the room you needed. She headed towards the door, and placed a hand on the knob. Without having to turn it, the door opened, and Marinette gasped at the sight in front of her.

Standing in front of a body-sized mirror was Adrien, and he was shirtless, allowing Marinette to view his nicely developing upper body.

Adrien was reaching for a shirt located just above the mirror, but stopped in his tracks upon noticing the bluenette's reflection.

"Marinette?" he questioned before fumbling to reach for his shirt.

"I-I'm sorry," she said, frozen. "I-I just… I was looking for the washroom. I didn't mean to…" She trailed off, her eyes glued to the abs in front of her. Her face turned bright red as she held the sketchpad up to her face. "I'm sorry!" she yelled out again before turning around and sprinting through the halls.

"Wait!" She could hear Adrien calling out to her, but she was too embarrassed to stop.

Marinette stopped in front of Lucas' door, trying to turn the knob. She scowled upon noticing that he locked the darn thing. She then held a fist to the door, ready to bang on it, but realized that she didn't want to cause a ruckus.

"Marinette!" She heard Adrien call out to her once more.

She bit her bottom lip before turning around to see him walking her way. She pressed her back against the door as she stared at him. He had put on a plain white shirt, but even that wasn't enough for Marinette to fantasize about his body.

"I'm sorry! I to mean didn't!" she said, flustered. "I mean, I didn't mean to!"

"It's okay," he said with his usual warm smile. "I just wasn't expecting to see you here. I only ever see Nathalie or the other models. What are you doing here?"

Marinette tore her gaze away from his shirt to look into his entrancing green eyes. "I, well…"

Suddenly, the door flung open behind her, and Marinette fell backwards, her back pressing against Lucas' chest.

"She's here with me," said Lucas, grinning widely.

Marinette rebalanced herself and shuffled a few steps away from the pop star.

"You came here with Lucas?" asked Adrien, looking over to the bluenette.

"Yes," she squeaked. "It was Nino's idea for us to spend the day together."

"Oh, I see…" said Adrien with downcast eyes. "You got my father's permission to be here?" He looked back up.

Marinette opened her mouth to answer his question, but was interrupted by Lucas.

"Nope, but it will be fine. This play is important to everyone in Paris. He will understand."

"I guess…" Adrien sounded unsure.

Lucas reached out to Marinette's hand and intertwined his fingers with hers. He then pulled her back into the room, causing Adrien to take a step forward to try and look at her.

"I'll see you later," said Lucas. "Don't worry. I won't let her out of my sight."

"That's not what I'm con-"

Lucas closed the door on Adrien's face before allowing him to finish his sentence.

"Okay, well… If you need anything Marinette, you know where to find me." Adrien sounded through the door. "And by the way, the washroom is on your right at the very end!"

Marinette's face was as red as a tomato.

She waited until the sounds of Adrien's footsteps disappeared in the distance before marching up to Lucas and jamming her index finger below his collarbone.

"Oww," Lucas winced. "What was that for?" He reached for the spot that was aching and began to massage it.

"Why would you do that?" she asked, bewildered. "Why would you give me directions to his dressing room?"

"You guys are friends. I thought you would feel better if you saw him"

"Really?" Marinette crossed her arms, not believing his words.

"Fine," he said, giving up too easily. "You caught me. I had other plans."

"Other plans? What other plans?" She gritted through her teeth.

"I wanted to see if it was true."

"What was true?"

"Your crush on Adrien."

"What?" Marinette said, sharply. "Wh-what makes you think that I like Adrien?"

"You don't talk right. You're fidgety, and you get really red."

Marinette sighed before turning around. "So what, you're going to go tell him now?"

"No, we're partners in this play. We're supposed to help one another," he said. "So, I will help you."

"Help me?" she questioned. "Help me with what?" She turned around to look at him again.

"Help you win his heart."

* * *

 **Alas, we are here again! Hopefully, I'll be updating faster after this, but no guarantee.**

 **As usual, leave a like, follow, and/or review!**

 **I'd love to know what you guys think!**


End file.
